Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited

Consumer Defensive — Household & Personal Products · NSE

₹1,770.90−₹10.20 (−0.57%)

DalalBaazaar Score

70 / 100

🟢 Good

Verdict

REASONABLE

Risk

Moderate

Driven by high debt relative to equity.

In simple words: Strong business and financial position, with modest growth. Debt is the main factor to watch.

Decision support, not a buy or sell call.

As of 18 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm

Understanding the Business

Company site ↗

The 60-second version of Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited — what it does, how it earns, and who it competes with, before any of the numbers below.

What does this company do?

Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited manufactures and trades in personal and oral care products in India.

IndustryHousehold & Personal Products

SectorConsumer Defensive

Employees2,276

Annual revenue₹5,984 Cr

How does it make money?

Turns over ₹5,984 Cr a year. Of every ₹100 of sales, about ₹22 reaches shareholders as profit, with ₹33 left at the operating level before interest, tax and depreciation. Each of its 2,276 employees supports ₹2.63 Cr of revenue a year, the signature of a capital- or asset-led business.

Revenue / employee₹2.63 Cr

Who are its competitors?

The closest listed comparisons in its industry are HINDUSTAN UNILEVER LTD., DABUR INDIA LTD, ITC LTD, BRITANNIA INDUSTRIES LTD. These are the companies its valuation and returns are measured against elsewhere in this report.

Compared side by side in Peers ↓

What is its competitive advantage?The numbers suggest a real one

ROCE has stayed above 15% in every year available and stands at 107.4%. Returns that high normally get competed away; when they persist, something is protecting them, and its ROE of 83.7% against a peer median of 27.4% is consistent with that. What that something is — brand, scale, switching costs, regulation — the accounts cannot tell you.

Peer median ROE27.4%

What is the outlook?

24 analysts covering the stock expect revenue to grow about 7.8% and earnings to grow about 10.2% in the year to 2028. These are estimates by people who follow the company, not a forecast for the wider industry.

Est. revenue growth+7.8%

Est. earnings growth+10.2%

Analysts24

What has been driving growth?

Growth has come mainly from selling more, rather than from keeping more of each sale. Over 3 years revenue moved +15% while net margin moved +10% relative to itself. What this cannot tell you is which products, customers or geographies did the work — that lives in the segment disclosures of the annual report.

Revenue effect+15%

Margin effect+10%

DalalBaazaar Score

70/ 100

Good

Weighted across six categories. Every point is explained below.

✗ Revenue CAGR of only 4.9% — barely ahead of inflation
• Profit CAGR of 8.2%

Quality vs. Valuation

Company Quality

74/ 100

Good

How good the business is, ignoring the share price entirely.

Valuation

51/ 100

Fair

What you are being asked to pay, ignoring how good the business is.

A reasonable business at a reasonable price — neither the quality nor the valuation stands out in either direction.

Historical Valuation

Current P/E

35.7x

3Y Median

50.5x

40 monthly readings · mean 52.6x · range 33.9x–88.6x

Sector Median

38.6x

median of 4 sector peers

🟢Current valuation is approximately 29% below its 3y median of 50.5x. Cheaper than its own history, which is worth a reason too: the market may be pricing in something the backward-looking numbers do not show.

🟡Against its sector it is priced broadly in line with the peer median of 38.6x.

vs. its own history

Cheap

50.5x median over 40 months · -29%

vs. sector peers

Fair

38.6x median of 4 peers · -7%

vs. generic bands

Expensive

Above 35x

EV/EBITDA

23.9x

PEG

4.37

What's Good / What's Bad

🟢 What's Going Well7

Margins are improving
EBITDA margin is up from 30.8% to 32.8% over 3 years.
Debt is being paid down
Total debt is down 31% over 3 years.
Cash generation is improving
Free cash flow is up 56% over 3 years.
Return on equity is rising
ROE has improved from 61.0% to 83.7%.
Return on capital is rising
ROCE has improved from 78.7% to 107.4%.
High return on capital employed
ROCE of 107.4% is the mark of a business that converts capital into profit efficiently.
Consistently profitable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years.

🔴 What Needs Attention0

Nothing stands out as clearly deteriorating on the years of data available.

Red Flags

1 item require attention · 1 high

🔴High leverageFinancial
Debt/Equity of 2.99x — earnings must service borrowings before shareholders see anything.

Investment Thesis

🟢 Bull CaseWhat could make this work?

Capital compounds at a high rate
ROCE of 107.4% means each rupee reinvested earns well above what capital costs. If the company can keep deploying at this rate, growth creates value rather than just consuming cash.
Margin expansion has further to run
EBITDA margin has risen from 30.8% to 32.8%. If that holds, profit compounds faster than sales and today's multiple looks cheaper in hindsight than it does now.
Deleveraging frees up earnings
Debt is down 31% over 3 years. Every rupee of interest not paid drops to the bottom line, so profit can grow even if revenue does not.
Priced below its own history
The stock trades 29% below its own median multiple. If the business performs as it has and simply re-rates back to normal, that gap is return on its own.
Earnings have proved durable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years. Consistency lowers the risk that any single bad year is structural rather than cyclical.

🔴 Bear CaseWhat could go wrong?

Leverage amplifies any setback
Debt/Equity of 2.99x. Interest is payable whether or not the business has a good year.
Growth barely outpaces inflation
Revenue compounding at 4.9% a year is close to the rate prices rise, so the business is gaining little ground in real terms. That leaves the share price dependent on a re-rating rather than on earnings growth.

🟡 Key Things to WatchMeasurable tripwires, set against where this company stands today

1EBITDA margin holds above 31%✓ 32.8%
Two points below today's level — enough room for noise, tight enough to catch real compression.
2Revenue growth stays above 4% a year✓ 4.9% CAGR
Latest reported year was 11.8%. The bar is set below the established compounding rate, so ordinary variation does not trip it.
3Free cash flow remains positive✓ ₹1,730 Cr
Profit that never becomes cash eventually stops being profit.
4Debt / EBITDA stays below 2x✓ 0.0x
The ratio lenders write covenants against; it survives a small or negative equity base, unlike Debt/Equity.
5ROCE stays above 104%✓ 107.4%
Falling returns on capital are usually competition arriving, and show up here before they reach the margin.

Investment Checklist

9 / 12 checks passed

✓ Strong return on equity (ROE ≥ 15%)
✓ Strong return on capital employed (ROCE ≥ 15%)
✓ Healthy net margin (≥ 10%)
✓ Generates positive free cash flow
✗ Manageable leverage (Debt/Equity < 1.0)
✓ Adequate short-term liquidity (Current Ratio ≥ 1.0)
✓ Revenue growing year-over-year
✓ Profit growing year-over-year
✓ Not trading at an extreme valuation (P/E < 40x)
✓ Not buying right at the 52-week high
✗ Analyst consensus isn't majority-sell
✗ Short-term technical trend isn't bearish

Price history

Quick Metrics

6 good · 3 neutral · 2 weak

Market Cap

₹48,166 Cr

Mid Cap

Mid-sized — more growth headroom, but sharper swings than large caps

P/E (Trailing)

35.7x

Fair

Fairly valued against the generic band

P/B Ratio

30.41x

Rich

Steep premium to book — needs high, durable returns to justify

EPS (TTM)

₹49.55

Profitable

Profitable on a per-share basis

ROE

83.7%

Strong

Strong capital efficiency

ROCE

107.4%

Strong

Earns comfortably above its likely cost of capital

Debt/Equity

2.99x

High

High leverage

Revenue Growth (YoY)

11.8%

Healthy

Healthy top-line growth

Profit Growth (YoY)

7.0%

Modest

Slow profit growth

Dividend Yield

2.71%

Healthy

Meaningful cash return while you hold the stock

Free Cash Flow

₹1,730 Cr

Cash generative

Generates cash even after funding its capex

More Metrics

P/E (Forward)

30.3x

Improving

Below the trailing multiple — the street expects earnings to grow into the price

Operating Margin

27.7%

Good

Healthy core-business profitability

Net Margin

21.7%

Good

Strong bottom-line conversion

Current Ratio

1.28

Comfortable

Healthy short-term liquidity

Beta (vs Nifty)

0.51

Defensive

Steadier than the market

52W Range Position

Near low

Near its 52-week low

Technical Snapshot

SMA 20 / SMA 50

1812.4 / 1860.1

Bearish alignment (short < long)

Price vs SMA 200

Below

Long-term downtrend

RSI (14)

41.8

Neutral momentum

Financial Trend (4-Year)

Metric	FY23	FY24	FY25	FY26	3Y CAGR
Revenue	₹5,188 Cr	₹5,644 Cr	₹5,999 Cr	₹5,984 Cr	+4.9%
EBITDA	₹1,600 Cr	₹1,978 Cr	₹2,097 Cr	₹1,961 Cr	+7.0%
EBITDA Margin	30.8%	35.0%	35.0%	32.8%	—
PAT (Net Profit)	₹1,047 Cr	₹1,324 Cr	₹1,437 Cr	₹1,325 Cr	+8.2%
EPS	₹38.5	₹48.67	₹52.83	₹48.73	+8.2%
ROE	61.0%	70.6%	86.3%	83.7%	—
ROCE	78.7%	91.3%	111.1%	107.4%	—
Total Debt	₹69 Cr	₹72 Cr	₹61 Cr	₹47 Cr	-11.7%
Free Cash Flow	₹1,106 Cr	₹1,123 Cr	₹1,323 Cr	₹1,730 Cr	+16.1%

🟢 Revenue has grown at 4.9% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EBITDA has grown at 7.0% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EBITDA Margin has risen from 30.8% to 32.8% over 3 years (+1.9 pts).

🟢 PAT (Net Profit) has grown at 8.2% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EPS has grown at 8.2% a year over 3 years.

🟢 ROE has risen from 61.0% to 83.7% over 3 years (+22.7 pts).

🟢 ROCE has risen from 78.7% to 107.4% over 3 years (+28.7 pts).

🟢 Total Debt has shrunk at 11.7% a year over 3 years.

🟢 Free Cash Flow has grown at 16.1% a year over 3 years.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow — FY2026

Total Assets

₹3,408 Cr

Total Liabilities

₹1,824 Cr

Cash & Equivalents

₹1,426 Cr

Operating Cash Flow

₹1,806 Cr

Capex

-₹76 Cr

Shareholding (proxy)

Institutional Holding

22.5%

Insider Holding

51.4%

Corporate Actions

Next Earnings

22 Oct 2026

Dividend Rate

₹48

Ex-Dividend Date

01 Jun 2026

Analyst Consensus

Recommendations

8 Buy · 9 Hold · 9 Sell

Target Price (Mean)

₹2,175.12

+22.8% vs CMP

Target Range

₹1,800 – ₹2,750

Peer Comparison

Company	P/E	ROE
HINDUSTAN UNILEVER LTD.	42.5x	21.5%
DABUR INDIA LTD	34.7x	17.2%
ITC LTD	16.6x	27.4%
BRITANNIA INDUSTRIES LTD	44.1x	51.0%

Recent News

1 positive2 mixed3 general

COLPAL Outlook for the Week

Equitypandit, 09 Oct

Colgate-Palmolive (India) (COLPAL) Share Price Rises 2.21% Today

Univest, 13 OctPrice move

🟡Mixed / dependsA price move, which is not by itself a change in the business. Worth finding the cause before reading it as either good or bad.

Colgate-Palmolive India (COLPAL) Share/Stock Price Live, NSE

TechGraph, 09 Oct

Colgate India falls 3% despite Jefferies' bullish outlook; margins in focus

Business Standard, 18 AugAnalyst view

🟡Mixed / dependsBroker commentary — an opinion about the price rather than new information about the business.

Colgate Palmolive India stock falls 3% as brokerages cautious, flag growth-margin trade-off; check target...

Moneycontrol.com, 18 Aug

Don't Buy Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited (NSE:COLPAL) For Its Next Dividend Without Doing These Checks

Simply Wall Street, 28 MayCapital return

🟢Potentially positiveCash or shares returned to holders. A buyback is only good value if the shares were cheap when bought.

Watch Items

Trading very close to its 52-week low — worth checking whether this reflects a temporary setback or a structural problem.
Cross-check against the company's latest quarterly filing / investor presentation before acting.

DalalBaazaar Thesis

StrongBusiness Quality · Financial Health · Profitability

MiddlingGrowth · Valuation · Risk

Points for each in the Score ↑

Good business at a fair price

A sound business at a reasonable valuation. Suitable for a long-term holding, with the valuation and the direction of margins worth watching rather than the business itself. 1 high-severity red flag sits above this conclusion and should be read first.

All 5 tripwires holding · see Key things to watch ↑