KMB vs CL vs HNST Stock Comparison

Kimberly Clark, Colgate Palmolive and Honest Company Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
KMB Kimberly Clark Corp
$109.10 +10.8% 1M -9.6% 1Y
Market cap
$36.07B
P/E
18.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.58B
Div. yield
0.05%
Personal Care Products Consumer Staples
5 wins
CL Colgate Palmolive Co
$92.19 +7.1% 1M +18.5% 1Y
Market cap
$73.17B
P/E
35.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$21.05B
Div. yield
0.02%
Personal Care Products Consumer Staples
5 wins
HNST Honest Company, Inc.
$4.71 -11.0% 1M +28.3% 1Y
Market cap
$507.17M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$342.01M
Div. yield
–
Personal Care Products Consumer Staples
2 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Colgate Palmolive leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Colgate Palmolive 5, Kimberly Clark 5, Honest Company 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionKMBCLHNSTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $36.07B $73.17B $507.17M CL
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 18.5x 35.9x -41.7x KMB
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 14.3x 24.6x 39.3x KMB
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.7% +5.2% -12.3% CL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.8% 9.7% -3.6% KMB
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 19.4% 27.2% — CL
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 1.7x — KMB
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.05% 0.02% 0.00% KMB
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -9.6% +18.5% +28.3% HNST
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -3.5%/yr +3.7%/yr -11.9%/yr CL
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 29.4% 23.3% 71.4% CL
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 54/100 61/100 73/100 HNST

Percentile Scorecard

KMBCLHNST

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

AxisKMBCLHNST
Valuation 57 #23 of 52 49 #27 of 52 69 #17 of 52
Growth 43 #29 of 50 57 #22 of 50 65 #18 of 50
Profitability 82 #9 of 45 96 #3 of 45 48 #24 of 45
Financial Health 38 #35 of 56 51 #28 of 56 95 #4 of 56
Shareholder Returns 50 #16 of 31 53 #15 of 31 90 #4 of 31
Overall 54 61 73
  • KMB ranked among 60 companies in Household and Personal Products
  • CL ranked among 60 companies in Household and Personal Products
  • HNST ranked among 60 companies in Household and Personal Products

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodKMBCLHNSTSPY
1 month +10.8%+7.1%-11.0% -0.2%
3 months -3.5%-0.6%+23.3% +3.9%
6 months +10.8%+7.6%+34.6% +8.2%
Year to date +8.1%+16.7%+82.6% +12.9%
1 year -9.6%+18.5%+28.3% +12.3%
3 years -6.6%+28.4%+324.3% +87.4%
3 years, per year -2.3%+8.7%+61.9% +23.3%
5 years -16.1%+19.9%-47.0% +67.9%
5 years, per year -3.5%+3.7%-11.9% +10.9%
10 years -4.1%+30.6%— +261.1%
10 years, per year -0.4%+2.7%— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureKMBCLHNSTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 29.4%23.3%71.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 32.8%22.1%68.7% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.02-0.151.17 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.330.790.40 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -37.3%-31.1%-89.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.6%-7.0%-20.8% -1.2%
52-week high $120.66$99.14$5.95 $779.14
52-week low $93.05$74.98$2.10 $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.

MultipleKMBCLHNST
P/E now vs peer median 18.5xmedian 18.5x 36.2xmedian 18.5x -42.9xmedian 18.5x
P/S now vs peer median 2.2xmedian 1.6x 3.5xmedian 1.6x 1.6xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.9xmedian 12.9x 21.2xmedian 12.9x -35.7xmedian 12.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 19.9xmedian 18.6x 19.0xmedian 18.6x 10.2xmedian 18.6x
P/B now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 2.2x 129.8xmedian 2.2x 3.2xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.82median 0.97 2.98median 0.97 -0.98median 0.97

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 monthsKMBCLHNST
Revenue $16.58B $21.05B $342.01M
Gross profit $6.10B $12.72B $121.96M
Operating income $2.51B $3.13B -$14.94M
Net income $1.99B $2.16B -$12.17M
Free cash flow $1.82B $3.86B $52.71M
R&D – – $7.12M
EPS (diluted) $5.87 $2.54 $-0.11
Cash & equivalents $956.00M $1.37B $105.90M
Total debt $6.52B $7.86B –
Shares (diluted) 333.30M 801.80M 113.11M
Enterprise value $33.27B $67.89B $149.87M

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
MetricKMBCLHNST
P/E 18.5x 36.2x -42.9x
P/FCF 19.9x 19.0x 10.2x
P/Operating cash flow 10.9x 16.5x 9.5x
P/S 2.2x 3.5x 1.6x
P/B 19.4x 129.8x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 20.1x -79.1x 3.2x
EV/EBITDA 12.9x 21.2x -35.7x
EV/EBIT 16.6x 25.5x -29.1x
EV/Revenue 2.5x 3.8x 1.3x
EV/FCF 23.0x 20.7x 8.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.6x 17.9x 7.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.82 2.98 -0.98

Growth

14 metrics
MetricKMBCLHNST
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.7% 5.2% -12.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -6.7% 4.1% 0.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 2.0% 5.0% -20.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.8% 6.2% 10.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -5.8% -26.9% -437.7%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 3.5% 1.1% 35.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -18.9% -29.2% -287.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 6.5% 8.9% 40.1%
EPS growth (1Y) -19.5% -29.0% -289.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 6.6% 12.2% 43.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 16.1% 13.7% 1,143%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 1.5% 12.9% 47.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -13.4% 14.5% 977.7%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -8.7% 17.9% 45.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricKMBCLHNST
Gross margin 36.8% 60.4% 35.7%
EBITDA margin 19.5% 17.9% -3.6%
Operating margin 15.2% 14.9% -4.4%
Pretax margin 13.5% 14.0% -3.5%
Net margin 11.8% 9.7% -3.6%
FCF margin 11.0% 18.3% 15.4%
Operating cash flow margin 20.1% 21.2% 16.5%
Return on equity 105.0% 410.8% -7.2%
Return on assets 11.1% 12.9% -5.6%
Return on invested capital 19.4% 27.2% –
Return on capital employed 23.1% 29.7% -9.0%
Asset turnover 0.9x 1.3x 1.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 2.1x -4.7x
Stock comp / revenue 0.8% 0.8% 3.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricKMBCLHNST
Debt / assets 35.1% 46.8% –
Debt / equity 3.5x 13.9x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 1.7x –
Debt / FCF 3.6x 2.0x –
Liabilities / assets 89.9% 96.6% 24.1%
Equity / assets 10.1% 3.4% 75.9%
Interest coverage 10.7x 12.3x –
Current ratio 0.9x 1.0x 3.9x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.5x 2.9x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x 2.1x
Altman Z-score 3.34 6.86 5.13

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricKMBCLHNST
Dividend yield 4.7% 2.3% –
Net buyback yield 0.0% 1.5% 3.5%
Shareholder yield 4.7% 3.8% 3.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 84.4% 84.3% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 92.3% 47.2% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 2.2% 1.1% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 1.9% –

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.

ConsensusKMBCLHNST
Forward P/E 14.3xFY2026 24.6xFY2026 39.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $7.64FY2026 $3.75FY2026 $0.12FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +1.5%FY2026 +1.6%FY2026 +71.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -8.0% +11.7% 0.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $16.99BFY2026 $22.42BFY2026 $307.35MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.3%FY2026 +10.0%FY2026 -17.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +5.2% +2.1% +12.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersKMBCLHNST
Held by institutions 96.8% 83.8% 45.0%
Institutions holding 1,710 2,015 146
Change in shares held, QoQ +9.1% 0.0% +5.2%
Institutions buying 827 919 94
Institutions selling 620 720 36
Buyers to sellers 1.33 1.28 2.61

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.

KMBCLHNST
KMB 1.00 0.60 0.12
CL 0.60 1.00 0.08
HNST 0.12 0.08 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, KMB, CL and HNST?

Colgate Palmolive (CL) is the largest by market capitalisation: Kimberly Clark (KMB) $36.07B, Colgate Palmolive (CL) $73.17B, Honest Company (HNST) $507.17M.

Which stock is cheaper, KMB, CL and HNST?

Kimberly Clark (KMB) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Kimberly Clark (KMB) 18.5x, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 35.9x, Honest Company (HNST) -41.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Kimberly Clark (KMB) is cheapest (Kimberly Clark (KMB) 14.3x, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 24.6x, Honest Company (HNST) 39.3x). 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: Kimberly Clark (KMB) +0.7%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) +5.2%, Honest Company (HNST) -12.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Kimberly Clark (KMB) has the highest net margin (Kimberly Clark (KMB) 11.8%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 9.7%, Honest Company (HNST) -3.6%). On return on invested capital, Colgate Palmolive (CL) leads (Kimberly Clark (KMB) 19.4%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 27.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Honest Company (HNST) returned the most: Kimberly Clark (KMB) -9.6%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) +18.5%, Honest Company (HNST) +28.3%. Over five years, Colgate Palmolive (CL) compounded fastest (Kimberly Clark (KMB) -3.5%/yr, Colgate Palmolive (CL) +3.7%/yr, Honest Company (HNST) -11.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Kimberly Clark (KMB) has the highest dividend yield: Kimberly Clark (KMB) 0.05%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 0.02%, Honest Company (HNST) 0.00%. Honest Company (HNST) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Colgate Palmolive (CL) has been the steadiest (Kimberly Clark (KMB) 29.4%, Colgate Palmolive (CL) 23.3%, Honest Company (HNST) 71.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, KMB, CL and HNST?

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 5. 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.