CL vs PG Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Both CL and PG are elite consumer staples companies with century-old brand portfolios and exceptional dividend track records, but P&G is significantly larger with greater category breadth, while Colgate has stronger emerging market concentration and a faster-growing pet nutrition business.
CL vs PG compares two of the greatest consumer staples franchises in investing history, both offering defensive earnings and dividend reliability but with different portfolio breadth, geographic exposure, and growth vectors.
PG holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. CL has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+0.96% vs -5.13%), though PG trades at the lower forward P/E (21.19x vs 22.13x). On fundamentals, CL is growing revenue faster (8.40%), while PG maintains the higher operating margin (23.05%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies similar upside for both: +7.12% for CL and +8.68% for PG.
- →Want consumer staples exposure with a market-leading oral care brand and emerging market strength
- →Value Hill's Pet Nutrition as a higher-growth consumer segment within the Colgate portfolio
- →Prefer Colgate's somewhat more concentrated brand focus versus P&G's very broad empire
- →Want the broadest consumer staples portfolio with dominant brands across 10 product categories
- →Value P&G's 60+ year consecutive dividend increase track record
- →Seek maximum defensive consumer staples quality with premium pricing power across daily essentials
| Metric | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 40.5 | 40.8 |
| AI rank | #1043 | #1013 |
| Latest close | $89.48 | $150.38 |
| 1M return | -0.60% | +6.43% |
| 6M return | +12.23% | +1.74% |
| 1Y return | +0.96% | -5.13% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.15K (+1.5%) started 2025-06-18 | $9.52K (-4.8%) started 2025-06-18 |
| 5Y ago | $13.31K (+33.1%) started 2021-06-21 | $13.84K (+38.4%) started 2021-06-21 |
| 10Y ago | $19.47K (+94.7%) started 2016-06-20 | $30.5K (+205.0%) started 2016-06-20 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $71.6B | $350.17B |
| Trailing P/E | 34.68 | 21.99 |
| Forward P/E | 22.13 | 21.19 |
| Price/Sales | N/A | 4.58 |
| EV/Revenue | 3.77 | 4.33 |
| Analyst target | $95.85 | $163.43 |
| Target upside | +7.12% | +8.68% |
| Metric | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 8.40% | 7.40% |
| Earnings growth | -5.90% | 5.80% |
| EPS growth | -5.90% | +5.80% |
| FCF margin | +15.96% | +14.68% |
| Operating margin | 20.92% | 23.05% |
| Profit margin | 10.04% | 19.16% |
| ROIC proxy | 363.58% | 31.11% |
| Return on equity | 363.58% | 31.11% |
| Dividend yield | 2.37% | 2.83% |
| Beta | 0.32 | 0.39 |
| Debt/equity | 1640.54 | 67.65 |
| Current ratio | 1.02 | 0.73 |
| Quick ratio | 0.56 | 0.49 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | +1.46% | -4.83% |
| CAGR | +1.46% | -4.84% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.03 | -0.42 | |
| Max drawdown | 19.66% | 16.15% | |
| Max daily drop | 3.85% | 3.56% | |
| Max wkly drop | 7.16% | 8.12% | |
| 5Y | Growth | +20.69% | +24.76% |
| CAGR | +3.84% | +4.53% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.06 | 0.09 | |
| Max drawdown | 29.94% | 23.77% | |
| Max daily drop | 5.22% | 6.23% | |
| Max wkly drop | 8.10% | 8.92% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +54.18% | +131.23% |
| CAGR | +4.43% | +8.75% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.09 | 0.30 | |
| Max drawdown | 29.94% | 23.77% | |
| Max daily drop | 9.78% | 8.74% | |
| Max wkly drop | 12.85% | 16.27% |
| Category | CL | PG |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Colgate-Palmolive Company | The Procter & Gamble Company |
| Sector | Consumer Defensive | Consumer Defensive |
| Industry | N/A | Household & Personal Products |
| Core business | Colgate-Palmolive is a global consumer products company with leading market positions in toothpaste (Colgate), toothbrushes, soaps, and pet nutrition (Hill's Pet Nutrition), selling in virtually every country in the world. | Procter & Gamble is the world's largest consumer goods company, owning iconic brands across laundry (Tide, Ariel), baby care (Pampers), grooming (Gillette), feminine care (Always), and home care (Febreze, Mr. Clean), among many others. |
| Investor focus | Investors track Colgate's organic sales growth (volume and price), oral care market share, Hill's Pet Nutrition growth, and emerging market performance where Colgate has particularly strong brand positions. | Investors track P&G's organic sales growth and market share across its 10 product categories, pricing power versus volume balance, and execution of its portfolio focused on premium daily-use essentials. |
- →Number one toothpaste brand globally with market leadership in both developed and emerging markets
- →Hill's Pet Nutrition provides a fast-growing, higher-margin specialty pet food business
- →Exceptional emerging market exposure with strong brand loyalty across Africa, Latin America, and Asia
- →Unmatched portfolio of number-one or number-two brand positions across ten consumer goods categories
- →Exceptional pricing power demonstrated through sustained price increases with relatively limited volume loss
- →Dividend Aristocrat with 60+ years of consecutive dividend increases
- →More concentrated product portfolio (oral, personal, home care, pet) than P&G's very broad household products empire
- →Emerging market currency exposure creates USD revenue translation headwinds
- →Premium valuation reflects brand quality expectations that must be consistently delivered
- →Size makes percentage growth more challenging to sustain at the same level as smaller peers
- →Private label competition has intensified in some categories, particularly during periods of consumer price sensitivity
- →Heavily weighted toward developed markets with relatively less emerging market exposure than Colgate
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