Colgate-Palmolive (CL) Q3 2026 Earnings Report

The call was broadly optimistic. Colgate-Palmolive reported solid organic sales, EPS, cash flow, gross margin, market share, and regional performance, supported by productivity, pricing, premium innovation, advertising, and AI investments. The main challenges were elevated commodity and logistics costs, foreign exchange pressure, sluggish developed-market categories, the ongoing U.S. turnaround, Mexico-specific issues, and weakness in parts of China and Hill's. Management emphasized that productivity and revenue growth management are currently offsetting much of the cost pressure and expressed confidence in the company's global model and long-term growth opportunities.

Colgate-Palmolive said it expects the cost environment to continue through the fourth quarter and into the early part of next year, with tariffs peaking in the fourth quarter, underlying cost commodity pressure remaining elevated in Q4 and the near term, Q4 having “probably the highest level of commodity inflation on a year-on-year basis,” and Q4 logistics costs being the highest logistics cost quarter of the year, both in dollars and as a percent of sales; full-year gross profit margin is expected to expand year-on-year, up from roughly flat previously, while cost inflation remains roughly in the original range of $300± million. Global category growth is expected to continue at 1.5%-3%, with emerging markets in the 3%-5% range and developed markets in the 1.5%-2% range, while another comment cited developed-market growth in the “1.5 to more or less 2.5 growth rate.” The company said it expects more pricing globally, with pricing in developed markets likely to come through new innovation and list prices more likely in emerging markets, and will not share 2027 guidance until the first quarter of next year.