COMPARE · Data as of August 21, 2026
CL vs ELF
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CL scored 56.7, ELF scored 56.3 — CL leads.
Compare another set
CL
Colgate-Palmolive Company
56.7
$91.08 · $72.6B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
0.4
CL leads
ELF
e.l.f. Beauty, Inc.
56.3
$101.94 · $6.0B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
- CheapestCL35.9x
- Fastest growthELF+31.2%
- Highest qualityCL89 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CL
stronger →← stronger
ELF
89
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
47
68
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
94
30
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
40
ELF is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CL
ELF
$3.9bB
FCF
$280mC
+5.2%C+
Rev
+31.2%A
—
D/E
0.80B
35.9xC
P/E
104.0xD
1.75C+
PEG
1.37B
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
ELF
20% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
134% above
~9%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~28%/yr
-20%
1-yr DCF upside
-59%
-16%
5-yr DCF upside
-57%
-12%
10-yr DCF upside
-55%
These two disagree on this pair: the Value pillar ranks cheapness against sector peers, while price-vs-fair-value is an absolute read. A name can be the better value in its sector and still the dearer one on cash flows.
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
ELF
Why this score
- Diluting shareholders
The companies
CLColgate-Palmolive Company
Why now
Household & Personal Products · market cap $72.6b. 8% 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 +9% upside).
Moat
FCF converts 189% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined. $72.6b 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.
ELFe.l.f. Beauty, Inc.
Why now
Household & Personal Products · market cap $6.0b. Down 32% from 52-week high of $150.99 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +31% — in hypergrowth territory. 16 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $97.75 (implying -4% 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
Trailing P/E 104.0x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. Down 32% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up. Beta 2.39 implies above-market volatility — position-size to the drawdowns this name will produce in a market correction, not to its bull-case return.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
CL leads ELF by 0.5 points (56.5 to 56.0), its sharpest advantage coming in FCF (grade B). A contrarian could still prefer ELF for its stronger Rev (grade A).
Our AI analyst is busy right now, so this verdict is drawn directly from the pillars, grades and DCF above.
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 ELF diverge
The two are effectively level on the headline score. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
- QualityCL 89.0 · ELF 47.4CL +41.6
- GrowthCL 67.7 · ELF 93.9ELF +26.2
- ValueCL 30.3 · ELF 40.1ELF +9.8
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.