Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 775 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lowered its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 0.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,762,569 shares of the company’s stock after selling 775 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.34% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $250,914,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CL. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $912,375,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $348,718,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1,088.8% in the 4th quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,569,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,584,000 after acquiring an additional 2,353,268 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $793,542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $132,405,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL opened at $94.73 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.28. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $85.32 and a one year 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on CL shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.17.

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.