COMPARE · Data as of August 24, 2026
CL vs EL
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CL scored 57.0, EL scored 37.6 — CL leads.
Compare another set
CL
Colgate-Palmolive Company
57
$92.55 · $73.8B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
19.4
CL leads
EL
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.
37.6
$104.13 · $37.7B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
- Fastest growthCL+5.2%
- Highest qualityCL89 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CL
stronger →← stronger
EL
89
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
52
68
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
36
31
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
29
CL is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CL
EL
$3.9bB
FCF
$1.3bC+
+5.2%C+
Rev
+5.0%C+
—
D/E
2.43C
35.9xC
P/E
—
1.75C+
PEG
2.12C
—
P/S
2.5xC+
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CL
EL
21% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
68% above
~9%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~25%/yr
-21%
1-yr DCF upside
-51%
-18%
5-yr DCF upside
-40%
-13%
10-yr DCF upside
-22%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CL
Why this score
- Durable high returns
EL
Why this score
- Cut its dividend
The companies
CLColgate-Palmolive Company
Why now
Household & Personal Products · market cap $73.8b. 7% off the 52-week high of $99.33. 20 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $98.95 (implying +7% upside).
Moat
FCF converts 189% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined. $73.8b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Trailing P/E 36x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates.
ELThe Estée Lauder Companies Inc.
Why now
Household & Personal Products · market cap $37.7b. 14% off the 52-week high of $121.64. 26 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $105.85 (implying +2% upside).
Moat
Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income — non-cash charges (depreciation, intangible amortization) are holding down GAAP earnings while cash generation stays strong.
Risk
D/E 2.43 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer. Net margin 1.2% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first. ROE 5% is below the long-run sustainable threshold of ~10% — capital efficiency would need to improve for the equity base to compound at the market rate.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CL and EL diverge
On the headline score the gap is 19.4 points in favor of CL. The widest single difference is Quality, where CL leads by 37.4 points.
- QualityCL 89.0 · EL 51.6CL +37.4
- GrowthCL 67.7 · EL 36.2CL +31.5
- ValueCL 30.8 · EL 28.6level
Pillars run 0–100 against sector peers, so a score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.