CL - Colgate-Palmolive pushes past Q1 estimates amid steady price increases

2023-04-28 07:09:52 ET

Colgate-Palmolive ( NYSE: CL ) notched a beat on top and bottom lines for the first quarter after initiating double-digit price increases in the three month period.

The New York-based consumer products company posted $0.73 in Q1 earnings per share, edging expectations by $0.03, while $4.77B in revenue rose above the bar set by analysts by $190M. Net sales increased 8.5% and organic sales grew 10% “with growth in every division and in all four of our categories,” according to CEO Noel Wallace. A 12% jump in net pricing helped offset a 2% volume decline.

“Despite continued pressure from raw and packaging material costs during the quarter, gross profit margin improved sequentially versus fourth quarter 2022, which helped fund a 14% increase in advertising in support of our pricing and robust innovation across all categories,” Wallace said. “We expect to drive further gross margin improvement in the balance of the year through continued strong pricing and the benefits from funding-the-growth and other productivity initiatives.”

He added that the company remains well-positioned for the remainder of the year, allowing management to project 3% to 6% net sales growth against a consensus growth forecast of 4.9%. The company still expects gross profit margin expansion and increased advertising investment and now expects mid-single-digit earnings-per-share growth. The Street had forecast a 4.7% increase in EPS.

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive ( CL ) rose modestly after the report .

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