Compare Stocks › CL vs UNH

Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

As of 2026-08-03, CL is undervalued at $91, with a DCF intrinsic value of $34301600323 and a margin of safety of 100%. UNH is overvalued at $414, with an intrinsic value of $371 and a margin of safety of -12%. Of the two, CL has the wider margin of safety.

Colgate-Palmolive Company

$91.30

UNH

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated

$414.40

Rewards

★Colgate-Palmolive Company has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
★Gross margin of 60.4% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
★Colgate-Palmolive Company scores 98/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with roic consistency as the strongest competitive dimension.

UNH

★UnitedHealth Group Incorporated scores 73/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.

Risks

⚠PEG ratio of 2.32 indicates the stock is expensive relative to its expected growth — the market may be pricing in more growth than analysts project.
⚠High leverage (11.31x net debt/equity) combined with thin interest coverage (-1.0x) poses financial risk.
⚠10 insider sales with no purchases over the past 12 months — a persistent pattern of insider selling.

UNH

⚠ROIC has declined by 6.9 percentage points over the past 4 years, which may signal competitive erosion.
⚠Gross margin of 19.5% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
⚠FCF yield of 6.0% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.

Key Valuation Metrics

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UNH

Valuation

$3.46B

Free Cash Flow

$22.76B

N/A

FCF Yield

6.05%

35.94

Trailing P/E

31.25

22.43

Forward P/E

18.47

Quality & Moat

41.39%

ROIC

14.15%

267.37%

ROE

14.15%

60.43%

Gross Margin

19.51%

2.32

PEG Ratio

1.28

Balance Sheet Safety

11.31

Net Debt / Equity

0.40

N/A

Interest Coverage

N/A

1.29

Net Debt / EBITDA

1.73

2.32%

Dividend Yield

2.24%

CL: 4Ties: 2UNH: 5

CLUNH

Historical Fundamentals

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Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

UNH

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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$0.00

created per $1 retained over 3 years

Value Destroyer

Σ Retained

$1.96B

Δ Market Cap

+$0.23

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

UNH

$-7.37

created per $1 retained over 3 years

Market Cap Declined

Σ Retained

$26.63B

Δ Market Cap

$-196.16B

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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100.0% Margin of Safety

Price is 100.0% below estimated fair value

Current Price: $91.30

Strongly undervalued

Fairly valued

Strongly overvalued

Fair Value: $34301600322.55

Strongly undervalued

Undervalued

Fairly valued

Overvalued

Strongly overvalued

UNH

11.7% Overvalued

Price is 11.7% above estimated fair value

Current Price: $414.40

Strongly undervalued

Undervalued

Fairly valued

Overvalued

Strongly overvalued

Fair Value: $370.88

Strongly undervalued

Undervalued

Fairly valued

Overvalued

Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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What growth rate is the market pricing in at $91?

-21.3%

Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth

Standard FCF implies -30.0%

The market implies -21.3% Owner Earnings growth, below historical trends — potential opportunity.

Standard FCF implies a more demanding -30.0%, reflecting heavy growth investment expected to generate future returns.

UNH

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $414?

+14.4%

Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth

Standard FCF implies +6.6%

The market implies +14.4% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +6.6%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

Economic Moat Score

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98/100

Wide Moat

70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. ROIC Consistency is the standout factor.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

UNH

73/100

Wide Moat

70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat driven primarily by revenue predictability. Margin Stability is the area most vulnerable to competitive pressure.

Forensic Accounting

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-3.00

Unlikely Manipulator

Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

UNH

-2.45

Unlikely Manipulator

Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Ownership Breakdown

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Insiders 0.1%Institutions 88.0%Retail & Other 11.8%

No. of Institutional Holders2,640

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

UNH

Insiders 0.2%Institutions 86.1%Retail & Other 13.6%

No. of Institutional Holders4,164

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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Buys (3M)

Buys (12M)

No open market insider purchases found.

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

UNH

Buys (3M)

Buys (12M)

REX JOHN F

President

$5.00M

@ $291.12 · 2025-05-16

HEMSLEY STEPHEN J

Chief Executive Officer

$25.02M

@ $288.57 · 2025-05-16

GIL KRISTEN

Director

$1.00M

@ $271.17 · 2025-05-15

FLYNN TIMOTHY PATRICK

Director

$491,786

@ $320.80 · 2025-05-14

NOSEWORTHY JOHN H

Director

$93,647

@ $312.16 · 2025-05-14

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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Sells (3M)

Sells (12M)

Total value (12M): $26.11M

MALCOLM GREGORY

Officer

$203,412

@ $88.44 · 2026-05-15

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$751,633

@ $87.41 · 2026-05-07

TSOURAPAS PANAGIOTIS

Officer

$4.78M

@ $95.57 · 2026-02-12

HAZLIN JOHN

Officer

$1.98M

@ $94.25 · 2026-02-10

MALCOLM GREGORY

Officer

$1.21M

@ $94.91 · 2026-02-06

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$1.51M

@ $95.03 · 2026-02-05

SUTULA STANLEY J III

Chief Financial Officer

$9.22M

@ $94.27 · 2026-02-04

DANIELS JENNIFER M.

Officer

$2.08M

@ $94.34 · 2026-02-04

WALLACE NOEL R

Chief Executive Officer

$4.28M

@ $93.91 · 2026-02-04

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$100,061

@ $80.89 · 2025-11-21

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$200,183

@ $88.97 · 2025-05-15

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$736,152

@ $92.02 · 2025-02-25

MALCOLM GREGORY

Officer

$101,121

@ $95.94 · 2024-11-26

WALLACE NOEL R

Chief Executive Officer

$3.17M

@ $95.00 · 2024-11-22

SUTULA STANLEY J III

Chief Financial Officer

$4.27M

@ $94.11 · 2024-11-05

SUTULA STANLEY J III

Chief Financial Officer

$4.68M

@ $93.53 · 2024-11-01

HUND-MEJEAN MARTINA

Director

$240,228

@ $103.86 · 2024-08-23

TSOURAPAS PANAGIOTIS

Officer

$1.52M

@ $102.94 · 2024-08-08

DANIELS JENNIFER M.

Officer

$2.26M

@ $102.76 · 2024-08-08

MALCOLM GREGORY

Officer

$1.09M

@ $103.10 · 2024-08-06

KOOYMAN JOHN W

Officer

$2.55M

@ $102.88 · 2024-08-06

MASSEY SALLY

Officer

$1.64M

@ $103.28 · 2024-08-06

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

UNH

Sells (3M)

Sells (12M)

Total value (12M): $284,000

CONWAY PATRICK HUGH

Officer

$284,000

@ $355.00 · 2026-04-23

CONWAY PATRICK HUGH

Chief Executive Officer

$179,645

@ $305.00 · 2025-06-10

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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😐Neutral(57/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

UNH

😐Neutral(57/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (57)

UNH

⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (57)

View CL Full Analysis View UNH Full Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions: CL vs UNH

Is Colgate-Palmolive Company or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated more undervalued in 2026?▼

Based on our discounted cash flow model, CL trades at a 100.0% margin of safety (intrinsic value $34301600323 vs. price $91), compared to UNH's -11.7% margin of safety (intrinsic $371 vs. $414).

Which stock has a wider economic moat, Colgate-Palmolive Company or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated?▼

CL scores 98/100 (Wide moat), while UNH scores 73/100 (Wide moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.

Is UnitedHealth Group Incorporated in financial distress?▼

UNH's Altman Z-Score of 2.9 places it in the Grey zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. CL scores 4.3 (Safe zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.

Which stock has higher return on invested capital, Colgate-Palmolive Company or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated?▼

CL earns 41.4% ROIC versus UNH's 14.1%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.

Which dividend is safer, Colgate-Palmolive Company's or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated's?▼

UNH's dividend earns a safety score of 84/100 (Very Safe), compared to CL's 64/100 (Safe). UNH has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.