CL vs EL vs PBH Stock Comparison

Colgate Palmolive, Estee Lauder Companies and Prestige Consumer Healthcare Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CL Colgate Palmolive Co
$98.75 +14.6% 1M +29.0% 1Y
Market cap
$78.61B
P/E
38.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$21.28B
Div. yield
0.02%
Personal Care Products Consumer Staples
8 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Colgate Palmolive leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Colgate Palmolive 8, Prestige Consumer Healthcare 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCLELPBHLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $78.61B $39.39B $2.11B CL
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 38.3x 107.1x 12.3x PBH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 26.3x 35.2x 10.9x PBH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.9% +5.8% -1.4% CL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 9.6% 2.4% 15.6% PBH
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 27.6% 4.4% 6.3% CL
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.6x 2.2x 5.9x CL
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.02% 0.01% 0.00% CL
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +29.0% +20.7% -12.2% CL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.9%/yr -20.4%/yr -3.3%/yr CL
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 23.5% 48.9% 34.3% CL
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 49/100 70/100 PBH

Percentile Scorecard

CLELPBH

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCLELPBH
Valuation 47 #27 of 50 35 #33 of 50 84 #9 of 50
Growth 58 #21 of 49 79 #11 of 49 54 #23 of 49
Profitability 96 #3 of 45 61 #18 of 45 73 #13 of 45
Financial Health 49 #28 of 54 40 #33 of 54 51 #27 of 54
Shareholder Returns 57 #14 of 31 30 #22 of 31 90 #4 of 31
Overall 61 49 70
  • CL ranked among 58 companies in Household and Personal Products
  • EL ranked among 58 companies in Household and Personal Products
  • PBH ranked among 58 companies in Household and Personal Products

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCLELPBHSPY
1 month +14.6%+20.1%+16.5% -1.0%
3 months +5.9%+28.9%+0.3% -0.4%
6 months +12.0%+29.3%-2.1% +4.5%
Year to date +25.0%+7.0%-13.8% +12.4%
1 year +29.0%+20.7%-12.2% +13.6%
3 years +32.0%+1.0%-10.8% +76.4%
3 years, per year +9.7%+0.3%-3.7% +20.8%
5 years +26.9%-67.9%-15.5% +63.7%
5 years, per year +4.9%-20.4%-3.3% +10.4%
10 years +41.9%+41.9%+16.0% +267.7%
10 years, per year +3.6%+3.6%+1.5% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureCLELPBHSPY
Volatility, 1Y 23.5%48.9%34.3% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 21.9%52.0%38.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.141.36-0.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.240.42-0.36 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -31.1%-86.5%-49.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -0.4%-6.3%-24.3% -1.6%
52-week high $99.14$119.61$70.21 $779.14
52-week low $76.11$67.23$44.75 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCLELPBH
P/E now vs peer median 38.3xmedian 19.8x 110.7xmedian 19.8x 14.7xmedian 19.8x
P/S now vs peer median 3.7xmedian 1.7x 2.7xmedian 1.7x 2.3xmedian 1.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 22.3xmedian 13.6x 24.8xmedian 13.6x 13.7xmedian 13.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 20.7xmedian 17.5x 26.8xmedian 17.5x 10.7xmedian 17.5x
P/B now vs peer median 122.7xmedian 2.3x 10.1xmedian 2.3x 1.3xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 3.76median 0.89 -8.59median 0.89 0.24median 0.89

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCLELPBH
Revenue $21.28B $15.28B $1.10B
Gross profit $12.90B $11.62B $591.44M
Operating income $3.16B $1.02B $290.17M
Net income $2.17B $368.00M $172.01M
Free cash flow $3.79B $1.52B $235.36M
EPS (diluted) $2.57 $1.01 $3.61
Cash & equivalents $1.53B $3.20B $89.13M
Total debt $7.72B $7.25B $2.02B
Shares (diluted) 799.70M 366.10M 47.60M
Enterprise value $73.09B $26.49B $1.78B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCLELPBH
P/E 38.3x 110.7x 14.7x
P/FCF 20.7x 26.8x 10.7x
P/Operating cash flow 18.0x 20.9x 10.1x
P/S 3.7x 2.7x 2.3x
P/B 122.7x 10.1x 1.3x
P/Tangible book -94.3x 89.1x -1.9x
EV/EBITDA 22.3x 24.8x 13.7x
EV/EBIT 26.8x 43.9x 15.3x
EV/Revenue 4.0x 2.9x 4.0x
EV/FCF 22.4x 29.5x 18.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.4x 23.0x 17.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.76 -8.59 0.24

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCLELPBH
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.9% 5.8% -1.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.6% -0.5% -0.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 6.7% 8.4% -5.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 2.2% -1.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) -26.1% 305.9% -13.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 0.5% 2.5% 140.9%
Net income growth (1Y) -28.6% 139.6% -19.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 7.7% -12.9% 59.3%
EPS growth (1Y) -28.5% 139.3% -15.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 10.2% -12.9% 60.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 8.8% 21.5% -9.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 10.0% -0.4% 4.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 10.0% 45.2% -12.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 14.1% 22.4% 3.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCLELPBH
Gross margin 60.6% 76.0% 53.5%
EBITDA margin 17.9% 11.8% 29.4%
Operating margin 14.8% 6.7% 26.3%
Pretax margin 13.9% 4.9% 21.2%
Net margin 9.6% 2.4% 15.6%
FCF margin 17.8% 9.9% 21.3%
Operating cash flow margin 20.5% 12.7% 22.6%
Return on equity 360.5% 9.4% 9.0%
Return on assets 13.0% 1.9% 4.3%
Return on invested capital 27.6% 4.4% 6.3%
Return on capital employed 31.2% 7.5% 7.5%
Asset turnover 1.3x 0.8x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.0x 5.3x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.8% 1.9% 1.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCLELPBH
Debt / assets 46.1% 36.3% 44.2%
Debt / equity 12.1x 1.8x 1.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.6x 2.2x 5.9x
Debt / FCF 2.0x 4.8x 8.6x
Liabilities / assets 96.2% 79.8% 58.0%
Equity / assets 3.8% 20.2% 42.0%
Interest coverage 12.6x 3.1x –
Current ratio 1.0x 1.3x 3.2x
Quick ratio 0.5x 0.8x 1.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.5x 0.6x
Altman Z-score 7.09 3.37 1.66

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCLELPBH
Dividend yield 2.1% 1.2% –
Net buyback yield 1.4% 0.0% 4.8%
Shareholder yield 3.6% 1.3% 4.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) 84.2% 137.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 48.3% 33.4% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 0.9% 0.4% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 1.9% -18.8% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCLELPBH
Forward P/E 26.3xFY2026 35.2xFY2027 10.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $3.75FY2026 $3.18FY2027 $4.86FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +1.6%FY2026 +28.7%FY2027 +11.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +11.7% +17.9% -0.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $22.42BFY2026 $16.39BFY2027 $1.25BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +10.0%FY2026 +8.9%FY2027 +15.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.1% -1.8% +15.9%
CL estimates →EL estimates →PBH estimates →

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCLELPBH
Held by institutions 83.8% 63.3% 100.0%
Institutions holding 2,019 835 319
Change in shares held, QoQ 0.0% 0.0% +3.4%
Institutions buying 921 442 157
Institutions selling 722 282 122
Buyers to sellers 1.28 1.57 1.29
CL holders →EL holders →PBH holders →

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CLELPBH
CL 1.00 0.22 0.32
EL 0.22 1.00 0.32
PBH 0.32 0.32 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry
CL · Personal Care Products
+KVUEKenvue +KMBKimberly Clark +BBWIBath & Body Works +PRGOPerrigo +HLFHerbalife +EPCEdgewell Personal Care +RAJAFTFA Therapeutics +HNSTHonest Company
Plot all 124 Personal Care Products stocks → Plot all 50 Cosmetics stocks →

Related Comparisons

CL vs KVUEKenvue CL vs KMBKimberly Clark CL vs BBWIBath & Body Works CL vs PRGOPerrigo

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CL, EL and PBH?

Colgate Palmolive (CL) is the largest by market capitalisation: Colgate Palmolive (CL) $78.61B, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) $39.39B, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) $2.11B.

Which stock is cheaper, CL, EL and PBH?

Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Colgate Palmolive (CL) 38.3x, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 107.1x, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 12.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) is cheapest (Colgate Palmolive (CL) 26.3x, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 35.2x, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 10.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Colgate Palmolive (CL) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Colgate Palmolive (CL) +5.9%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) +5.8%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) -1.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) has the highest net margin (Colgate Palmolive (CL) 9.6%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 2.4%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 15.6%). On return on invested capital, Colgate Palmolive (CL) leads (Colgate Palmolive (CL) 27.6%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 4.4%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 6.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Colgate Palmolive (CL) returned the most: Colgate Palmolive (CL) +29.0%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) +20.7%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) -12.2%. Over five years, Colgate Palmolive (CL) compounded fastest (Colgate Palmolive (CL) +4.9%/yr, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) -20.4%/yr, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) -3.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Colgate Palmolive (CL) has the highest dividend yield: Colgate Palmolive (CL) 0.02%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 0.01%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 0.00%. Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Colgate Palmolive (CL) has been the steadiest (Colgate Palmolive (CL) 23.5%, Estee Lauder Companies (EL) 48.9%, Prestige Consumer Healthcare (PBH) 34.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CL, EL and PBH?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Colgate Palmolive (CL) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.