Critical Comparison: Ollie’s Bargain Outlet (NASDAQ:OLLI) & Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet (NASDAQ:OLLI) and Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Ollie’s Bargain Outlet and Colgate-Palmolive”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet	$2.54 billion	2.73	$199.76 million	$3.62	31.25
Colgate-Palmolive	$20.10 billion	3.48	$2.89 billion	$3.57	24.28

Colgate-Palmolive has higher revenue and earnings than Ollie’s Bargain Outlet. Colgate-Palmolive is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Colgate-Palmolive has a beta of 0.3, meaning that its stock price is 70% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Ollie’s Bargain Outlet and Colgate-Palmolive, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet	0	4	12	0	2.75
Colgate-Palmolive	0	5	11	0	2.69

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet presently has a consensus price target of $142.14, suggesting a potential upside of 25.65%. Colgate-Palmolive has a consensus price target of $89.44, suggesting a potential upside of 3.19%. Given Ollie’s Bargain Outlet’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Ollie’s Bargain Outlet is more favorable than Colgate-Palmolive.

Profitability

This table compares Ollie’s Bargain Outlet and Colgate-Palmolive’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet	8.81%	12.86%	8.29%
Colgate-Palmolive	14.47%	333.39%	17.57%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

80.4% of Colgate-Palmolive shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Ollie’s Bargain Outlet shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Colgate-Palmolive shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

About Ollie’s Bargain Outlet

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the retail of closeouts, excess inventory, and salvage merchandise. It offers overstocks, package changes, manufacturer refurbished goods, and irregulars. The company’s products include housewares, food, books and stationery, bed and bath, floor coverings, electronics and toys. Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings was founded by Mark Butler, Mort Bernstein, Oliver Rosenberg and Harry Coverman on July 29, 1982, and is headquartered in Harrisburg, PA.

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.