Head to Head Review: Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) and Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI)

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) and Albertsons Companies (NYSE:ACI) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, earnings, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Dividends

Colgate-Palmolive pays an annual dividend of $2.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Albertsons Companies pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. Colgate-Palmolive pays out 82.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Albertsons Companies pays out 212.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Colgate-Palmolive has raised its dividend for 63 consecutive years and Albertsons Companies has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Colgate-Palmolive and Albertsons Companies”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Colgate-Palmolive	$20.38 billion	3.54	$2.13 billion	$2.57	35.13
Albertsons Companies	$83.17 billion	0.09	$217.40 million	$0.32	48.05

Colgate-Palmolive has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Albertsons Companies. Colgate-Palmolive is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Albertsons Companies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Colgate-Palmolive and Albertsons Companies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Colgate-Palmolive	10.04%	386.76%	17.89%
Albertsons Companies	0.26%	42.75%	4.24%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

80.4% of Colgate-Palmolive shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.3% of Albertsons Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Colgate-Palmolive shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Albertsons Companies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Colgate-Palmolive has a beta of 0.33, meaning that its share price is 67% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Albertsons Companies has a beta of 0.4, meaning that its share price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Colgate-Palmolive and Albertsons Companies, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Colgate-Palmolive	0	6	12	0	2.67
Albertsons Companies	3	4	10	0	2.41

Colgate-Palmolive presently has a consensus price target of $95.88, indicating a potential upside of 6.20%. Albertsons Companies has a consensus price target of $21.31, indicating a potential upside of 38.57%. Given Albertsons Companies’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Albertsons Companies is more favorable than Colgate-Palmolive.

Summary

Colgate-Palmolive beats Albertsons Companies on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Colgate-Palmolive

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells consumer products in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Oral, Personal and Home Care; and Pet Nutrition. The Oral, Personal and Home Care segment offers toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, bar and liquid hand soaps, shower gels, shampoos, conditioners, deodorants and antiperspirants, skin health products, dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, and other related items. This segment markets and sells its products under various brands, which include Colgate, Darlie, elmex, hello, meridol, Sorriso, Tom's of Maine, Irish Spring, Palmolive, Protex, Sanex, Softsoap, Lady Speed Stick, Speed Stick, EltaMD, Filorga, PCA SKIN, Ajax, Axion, Fabuloso, Murphy, Suavitel, and Soupline to a range of traditional and eCommerce retailers, wholesalers, and distributors. It includes pharmaceutical products for dentists and other oral health professionals. Its Pet Nutrition segment offers pet nutrition products for everyday nutritional needs under the Hill's Science Diet brand; and a range of therapeutic pet products to help nutritionally support dogs and cats in different stages of health under the Hill's Prescription Diet brand. This segment markets and sells its products through pet supply retailers, veterinarians, and eCommerce retailers. Colgate-Palmolive Company was founded in 1806 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of food and drug stores in the United States. The company’s food and drug retail stores offer grocery products, general merchandise, health and beauty care products, pharmacy, fuel, and other items and services. It also manufactures and processes food products for sale in stores. It operates stores under various banners, including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs, Jewel-Osco, Acme, Shaw’s, Star Market, United Supermarkets, Market Street, Haggen, Kings Food Markets, and Balducci’s Food Lovers Market; and pharmacies, in-store branded coffee shops, adjacent fuel centers, distribution centers, and manufacturing facilities, as well as various digital platforms. Albertsons Companies, Inc. was founded in 1860 and is headquartered in Boise, Idaho. Albertsons Companies, Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Albertsons Investor Holdings LLC.