Dechtman Wealth Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Dechtman Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 16.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,324 shares of the company’s stock after selling 454 shares during the period. Dechtman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 1.5 %

CL stock opened at $89.52 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $89.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.43, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a fifty-two week low of $85.32 and a fifty-two week high of $109.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.87 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.82%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on CL shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $96.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (down from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.72.

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.