Colgate-Palmolive seeks to divest some personal care brands, sources say

Many consumer conglomerates are reshaping and focusing their portfolios to better weather the storm of tariffs, financially pressured consumers and higher costs for energy and other inputs that are impacting their earnings. Offloading pieces of a broader portfolio also helps concentrate resources on core brands.

This year has seen Unilever agree to sell its food business to McCormick for $45 billion. It also spun off its Magnum ice cream unit last year following the sale of more than 20 beauty and personal care brands to Yellow Wood Partners in 2024.

Earlier this month, Nestle agreed to sell its vitamins business to Yellow Wood for around $1 billion after divesting a stake in its waters and premium beverages business to another buyout firm, Platinum Equity.

New York-based Colgate has a roughly $70 billion market capitalization, and its stock is up around 11% year to date, according to data provider LSEG. In its most recent quarterly earnings, net sales rose 4.9%. Organic sales in its North American market, however, fell 3%.

Colgate CEO Noel Wallace told the Barclays consumer conference this week that it was facing intensifying competition in North America and getting the business where it needs to be would involve a "long-term turnaround".