Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL) sales rise 4.6% and it lifts margin and EPS outlook

What happened

Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE: CL) reported third-quarter 2026 net sales of $5.37 billion, up 4.6% from $5.13 billion a year earlier. It raised its full-year outlook for gross profit margin and Base Business earnings per share. It also narrowed its sales guidance.

Organic sales rose 3.6%, including a 0.2% drag from lower private label pet food sales. Volume added 1.7% and pricing added 2.0%, so growth came from both selling more and charging more. Foreign exchange added 1.0% to reported sales.

Noel Wallace, chairman, president and chief executive, called it the fourth quarter of sequential improvement in worldwide volume growth. GAAP diluted earnings per share rose 3% to $0.94. Base Business EPS rose 7% to $0.97 from $0.91. It excludes $0.03 a share of Strategic Growth and Productivity Program charges.

Key numbers

Metric	Latest	Change	Source
Third-quarter net sales	$5.37 billion	from $5.13 billion, +4.6%	SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99
Third-quarter Base Business EPS (non-GAAP)	$0.97	from $0.91, +7%	SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99
Third-quarter GAAP diluted EPS	$0.94	from $0.91, +3%	SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99
Third-quarter GAAP gross profit margin	60.2%	from 59.4%, +80 basis points	SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99
Net cash provided by operations, first nine months	$2.91 billion	from $2.75 billion, +6.1%	Calculated from SEC 8-K
Global toothpaste market share, year to date	41.4%		SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99

Read more: Colgate-Palmolive (CL) company research

Margins, costs and cash

Gross profit margin reached 60.2% on a GAAP basis, up 80 basis points from 59.4% a year earlier. Base Business gross margin was 60.3%, up 90 basis points.

Costs grew too. Advertising was $775 million, up from $674 million. Selling, general and administrative expenses rose to 39.3% of net sales from 38.4%. GAAP operating profit rose 3% to $1.09 billion, but operating margin slipped to 20.3% from 20.6%. Base Business operating profit rose 5% to $1.12 billion at a 20.8% margin, up 20 basis points.

Cash was stronger. Net cash provided by operations was $2.91 billion for the first nine months, up $168 million or 6.1% from $2.75 billion a year earlier. Free cash flow before dividends rose to $2.51 billion from $2.36 billion. Colgate-Palmolive paid $1.31 billion in dividends and bought $927 million of treasury shares, up from $804 million.

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Where growth was uneven

North America was the weak spot. Net sales fell 1.7% in the quarter as volume dropped 3.7%, only partly offset by 2.2% pricing. Operating profit fell 11% to $177 million. Latin America, 25% of company sales, grew net sales 12.5% and lifted operating profit 17% to $392 million. Hill's Pet Nutrition net sales rose 5.6%.

The nine-month picture is weaker on a GAAP basis. Operating profit fell to $3.07 billion from $3.21 billion, and operating margin dropped to 19.1% from 21.2%. Corporate costs rose to $902 million from $523 million and include $327 million of program charges in 2026. Base Business operating profit for the nine months rose 5% to $3.40 billion from $3.24 billion.

Why it matters

OptimistFi has argued that Colgate-Palmolive's brands, distribution and price discipline turn steady category demand into cash flow and shareholder returns. The quarter supports that view on three points. Pricing and volume both helped, gross margin widened, and operating cash flow rose.

Global shares of 41.4% in toothpaste and 33.1% in manual toothbrushes year to date point to brand strength. The company says those figures rely on Nielsen data and internal estimates. OptimistFi reads the report as strengthening the case.

The caveat is that the gains are uneven. North America volume fell, and nine-month GAAP operating profit is lower. The case leans on Base Business measures that exclude program charges.

What's next

Colgate-Palmolive hosts a conference call on third-quarter results at 8:30 a.m. ET on Oct. 30, after posting prepared materials at about 7:00 a.m. ET. Any sign that North America volume is stabilizing would strengthen the case. Further declines there would weaken it.

The company now expects 2026 net sales up 4% to 5%, versus 2% to 6% before. That includes a low-single-digit positive foreign exchange impact. It expects organic sales growth broadly in line with the nine-month figure of 3.0%, versus 1% to 4% before.

Gross profit margin is now expected to be up on both GAAP and Base Business bases, versus roughly flat before. Base Business EPS growth is now expected at 5% to 7%, versus mid-single-digit growth before. Advertising is still expected to rise in dollars and as a share of net sales. The next quarterly report will test whether margin gains hold.

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