Van ECK Associates Corp Reduces Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Van ECK Associates Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 96.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,466 shares of the company’s stock after selling 35,344 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $133,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 1.4% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,950,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $306,246,000 after buying an additional 40,324 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 13,776.8% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 435,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,248,000 after buying an additional 432,730 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 16.2% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 17,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,857,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the third quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 16.4% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 254,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,464,000 after buying an additional 35,986 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock opened at $89.56 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $88.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.44, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.44. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $84.45 and a 12 month high of $109.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 EPS 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 in the previous year, the business posted $0.87 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is 56.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CL has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.16.

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.