Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 2.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 55,054 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,314 shares during the quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $5,342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 56.6% during the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on CL shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $103.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $119.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Bank of America upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised Colgate-Palmolive to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.74.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $102.31 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $103.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.62. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $67.62 and a 52-week high of $109.30. The company has a market cap of $83.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.38, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.90.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.21% and a return on equity of 470.19%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 63.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Panagiotis Tsourapas sold 14,794 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.94, for a total value of $1,522,894.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $529,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Panagiotis Tsourapas sold 14,794 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.94, for a total value of $1,522,894.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $529,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Sally Massey sold 15,850 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.28, for a total value of $1,636,988.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,942 shares in the company, valued at $1,439,929.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 43,490 shares of company stock valued at $4,486,063. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.