Colgate-Palmolive (CL)

Consumer Staples · $77.9B market cap · SEC CIK 0000021665

Next reports on Jan 28, 2027, after the close, with analysts expecting $1.01 in earnings per share.

52-week range $75.96 to $101.18. 3% below its 52-week high and 29% above its low.

The case for CL

• Generated $3.6B of free cash flow in FY2025, 18% of revenue.
• Earns 12% a year on everything it owns (return on assets).
• Gross margin of 61% absorbs cost shocks.
• Moves less than the market (beta 0.28).
• Pays a modest 2.5% dividend.

The case against

• Expensive for its growth: 38.0× earnings, where 2% a year of growth plus a 2.5% dividend would justify about 15×.
• Earnings per share down 28.3%.
• Current liabilities exceed current assets (ratio 0.96).
• Long-term debt of $6.9B against $1.3B of cash.

What the score is made of

Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Consumer Staples companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. The score is where that blend places it in the S&P 500. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.

• Equity is a sliver of assets, so return on assets stands in for return on equity, and price-to-book and debt-to-equity are left out.
• Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 36 Consumer Staples companies.

The financials

The financials, five years deep

Pulled from Colgate-Palmolive's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are worked out from the others.

What Colgate-Palmolive says it does

Development of the Business Colgate-Palmolive Company (together with its subsidiaries, “we,” “us,” “our,” the “Company” or “Colgate-Palmolive”) is a caring, innovative growth company united behind our purpose to reimagine a healthier future for all people, their pets and our planet. To achieve our business and financial objectives and deliver peer-leading performance and total shareholder return, we are focused on driving organic sales growth; delivering consistent, compounded earnings per share growth; achieving operational efficiencies; and driving growth in free cash flow along with the efficient use of our balance sheet. We do this by leveraging the global reach and penetration of our brands; building the incremental benefit of superior, science-based innovation supported by an agile and resilient supply chain; harnessing the power of best-in-class omni-channel demand generation; leading in capabilities such as data, analytics and…

Risk factors CL lists in its 10-K

• We face risks associated with significant international operations, including exposure to foreign currency fluctuations
• Significant competition in our industry could adversely affect our business
• The rapidly changing retail landscape and changing consumer preferences may adversely affect our business
• The growth of our business depends on the successful identification, development and launch of innovative new products
• Damage to our reputation could have an adverse effect on our business
• Our success depends upon our ability to recruit, attract and retain key employees and the succession of senior management
• We have pursued and may continue to pursue acquisitions and divestitures, which could adversely impact our business
• Our business results are impacted by our ability to manage disruptions in our global supply chain and/or key office facilities
• Volatility in material and other costs has in the past and may continue to adversely impact our profitability
• There is no guarantee that our ongoing efforts to reduce costs will be successful
• We may not realize the benefits that we expect from our Strategic Growth and Productivity Program
• A cybersecurity incident, data incident or a failure of key technology systems could adversely impact our business
• Our reliance on third parties in many aspects of our business could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations
• Our business is subject to legal and regulatory risks in the United States and abroad
• Legal claims and proceedings could adversely impact our business
• Uncertain or unfavorable global macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions may adversely affect our business
• Disruptions in the credit markets or changes to our credit ratings may adversely affect our business
• Tax matters, including changes in tax rates, disagreements with taxing authorities and imposition of new taxes could negatively impact our business

Filings

Other Consumer Staples companies