Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys Shares of 304,866 Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 304,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,760,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 386.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,605 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 1,275 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 16.1% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 143,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,958,000 after acquiring an additional 19,849 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.8% during the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 45,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,728,000 after acquiring an additional 1,679 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 45,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,707,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares during the period. Finally, Glen Eagle Advisors LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 1,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $101.00 target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.06.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 4.4 %

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock opened at $91.75 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.41 billion, a PE ratio of 26.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $90.27 and its 200-day moving average is $93.20.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.