FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Has $254,000 Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH decreased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 6.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,826 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 79,894,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,368,378,000 after buying an additional 416,853 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,133,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,561,340,000 after acquiring an additional 4,625,472 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.2% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,815,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,195,785,000 after purchasing an additional 514,559 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $731,843,000. Finally, GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 6,709,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $534,799,000 after purchasing an additional 86,671 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 0.6 %

CL opened at $96.12 on Wednesday. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $67.62 and a 12 month high of $99.08. The company has a market cap of $78.86 billion, a PE ratio of 30.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.02 and a 200 day moving average of $87.76.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.96 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 485.40% and a net margin of 13.22%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.73 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is 63.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total value of $326,864.59. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,181 shares in the company, valued at $297,328.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Argus increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $109.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.83.

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.