In this article, we discuss 5 best consumer staple stocks to buy now. If you want to read our detailed analysis of the consumer staples sector and dividend investment, go directly to read 14 Best Consumer Staples Dividend Stocks To Buy Now.
5. Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 61
Dividend Yield as of March 6: 2.54%
Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) is a New York-based multinational consumer goods company that manufactures and distributes healthcare, personal care, and other household products. In February, Citigroup initiated its coverage on the stock with a Buy rating and an $84 price target, presenting a positive stance on the household and consumer sector.
Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL), one of the best consumer staples dividend stocks, currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share for a dividend yield of 2.54%, as of March 6. The company has been raising its dividends consistently for the past 60 years.
In Q4 2022, Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) generated over $4.6 billion in revenues, which showed a 5.2% growth from the same period last year. For FY22, the company’s operating cash flow came in at over $2.5 billion and its free cash flow amounted to $1.8 billion.
At the end of December 2022, Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) was a part of 61 hedge fund portfolios, compared with 57 in the previous quarter, as per Insider Monkey’s data. The stakes owned by these hedge funds have a total value of over $4.46 billion.
Third Point mentioned Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) in its recently-published Q4 2022 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:
“Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) remains one of the firm’s largest equity positions. The company offers defensive growth at a reasonable valuation, and we continue to see the potential for shares to deliver attractive risk adjusted returns over the next several years.
Fourth Quarter results were disappointing. The company missed on gross margins, guided 2023 well below the Street, and took another large impairment charge on its portfolio of skin care brands. The price action on the day of the print (down 5%) was extreme and perhaps reflective of growing investor frustration that the company has failed to sustainably grow earnings over the past decade.
We believe some of this “miss” was beyond the company’s control and that Colgate is on the road to delivering more predictable results. Organic growth remains strong and we expect it to start translating into earnings growth as execution improves, margins recover, and external pressures calm down…” (Click here to read the full text)
