Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Position Increased by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,482 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 232 shares during the quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $278,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vest Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 25.1% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 370,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,498,000 after buying an additional 74,337 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 22.1% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 10,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 910 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 4,053,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $323,115,000 after buying an additional 49,980 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $233,220.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at $1,628,484. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 8,930 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.35, for a total transaction of $762,175.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,470.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CL traded up $0.91 during trading on Friday, reaching $87.13. The stock had a trading volume of 6,005,071 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,627,129. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52 week low of $67.62 and a 52 week high of $90.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.78.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 11.82% and a return on equity of 509.75%. The company had revenue of $4.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.77 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. TheStreet raised shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells consumer products in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Oral, Personal and Home Care; and Pet Nutrition. The Oral, Personal and Home Care segment offers toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, bar and liquid hand soaps, shower gels, shampoos, conditioners, deodorants and antiperspirants, skin health products, dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, and other related items.