# Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL) fundamentals

Data as of 2026-09-08. NYSE, United States. Sector: Consumer Defensive / Household Products. Price $88.77, market value $70.8 billion.

## Valuation
- **P/E (trailing): 34.9×** (5-yr avg 29.0×, 3-yr avg 27.1×). Colgate-Palmolive Company trades at 34.9× trailing earnings, well above its own five-year average of 29.0×: investors are paying up relative to the company's past. The Consumer Defensive median in the September 2026 study was 20.1×. Forward P/E is 21.6×, lower than trailing, so analysts expect earnings to grow.
- **Price / sales: 3.4×**. Each dollar of revenue is priced at 3.4×.
- **Price / book: 299.9×**. The shares trade at 299.9× book value; most of the value is in earnings power and intangibles rather than the balance sheet.
- **EV / EBITDA: 20.5×**. Enterprise value is 20.5× operating earnings before depreciation, the multiple that ignores how the company is financed; above 20× is demanding.
- **Free-cash-flow yield: 5.5%** (5-yr avg 4.6%). Free cash flow equals 5.5% of the market value, in line with its five-year average of 4.6%. Above 5% is generally attractive.
- **Earnings yield: 2.9%**. The inverse of the P/E: 2.9% of the price is earned each year.

## Profitability
- **Gross margin: 60.4%**. Colgate-Palmolive Company keeps 60.4% of revenue after the direct cost of what it sells, the kind of margin that comes with software, brands or pricing power.
- **Operating margin: 14.9%**. 14.9% of revenue is left after running the business.
- **Net margin: 10.5%**. 10.5% of each dollar of sales reaches the bottom line.
- **Return on invested capital: 36.6%**. Return on all capital, debt included, is 36.6%: comfortably above what that capital costs.
- **Return on assets: 12.5%**. Each dollar of assets produces 12.5% of profit.

## Growth
- **Revenue growth (1 yr): 1.4%** (3-yr 4.3%/yr, 5-yr 4.4%/yr). Revenue grew 1.4% over the last year, against 4.4% a year compounded over five years: growth is slowing.
- **EPS growth (1 yr): -25.1%** (3-yr 7.3%/yr, 5-yr -3.5%/yr). Earnings per share fell 25.1%, slower than revenue, so margins compressed.
- **Free-cash-flow growth (3 yr): 25.0%/yr**. Free cash flow has compounded at 25.0% a year over three years, keeping pace with earnings: the growth is real cash.

## Financial health
- **Net debt / EBITDA: 1.8×**. It would take 1.8 years of operating earnings to repay net borrowings, within the comfortable range.
- **Altman Z-score: 4.58**. A Z-score of 4.58 places the company in the safe zone for bankruptcy risk.
- **Piotroski F-score: 5/9**. 5 of 9 checks pass: mixed.

## Dividends
- **Dividend yield: 2.39%** ($2.09 per share, trailing). Colgate-Palmolive Company yields 2.39%, a modest yield more typical of a growth-oriented payer.
- **Consecutive years of increases: 26**. 26 straight years of increases (the data covers 26 years, so this may be longer): a record very few companies hold.
- **Dividend growth (5 yr): 3.3%/yr** (1-yr 4.0%). The dividend has grown 3.3% a year over five years.

## Analyst view
- **Analyst consensus: buy** (20 analysts). 20 analysts cover Colgate-Palmolive Company; the consensus is buy, with an average price target of $98.95 (+11% from the current price). Analyst opinion is shown for context; it is not part of the Fundamental Score.

## Price and momentum
- **Total return (1 yr): 8.7%** (YTD 14.4%, 3-mo 0.8%). The shares are up 8.7% over twelve months including dividends.
- **From 52-week high: -10.6%** (19.1% above the low). Trading 11% below its 52-week high.
- **200-day average: above**. The price sits above its 200-day moving average, the usual definition of an uptrend.
- **RSI (14-day): 40**. An RSI of 40 is neutral.
- **Beta (1 yr): -0.13** (volatility 23%). Beta of -0.13 against the S&P 500: the shares move much less than the market.

Live score and charts: https://foliofundamentals.com/analyzer?s=CL · Page: https://foliofundamentals.com/stocks/cl

Not investment advice.