Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Downgraded to Hold at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $95.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $103.00.

CL has been the topic of several other research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a buy rating and a $110.00 target price on the stock. Argus increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $98.58.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock opened at $99.39 on Wednesday. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $100.61. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $95.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.06. The company has a market capitalization of $81.54 billion, a PE ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.39.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 485.40%. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total value of $1,149,977.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,309,691.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $1,149,977.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,309,691.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total transaction of $326,864.59. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $297,328.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CL. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 5,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 952,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,929,000 after acquiring an additional 52,262 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 117,244 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,346,000 after acquiring an additional 41,731 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 14,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after acquiring an additional 745 shares during the period. Finally, IFG Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at $208,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Company 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.