Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Has $10.13 Million Stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 104,427 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,554 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $10,134,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth approximately $225,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 184,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,739,000 after buying an additional 10,589 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at $1,428,000. Team Hewins LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at $374,000. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 50,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,062,000 after acquiring an additional 5,888 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Martina Hundmejean sold 2,313 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total transaction of $240,228.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,874.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Martina Hundmejean sold 2,313 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total transaction of $240,228.18. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,874.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Panagiotis Tsourapas sold 14,794 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 5,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $529,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 43,490 shares of company stock valued at $4,486,063. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $103.03 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $84.53 billion, a PE ratio of 32.60, a PEG ratio of 3.72 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. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $102.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.76. Colgate-Palmolive has a twelve month low of $67.62 and a twelve month high of $109.30.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CL shares. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $109.00 price target for the company. Hsbc Global Res lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $107.00 to $109.00 in a research report on Monday, September 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.79.

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.