Colgate and Kimberly-Clark to Open Near 52-Week Highs

At the end of last week, consumer goods giants Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL) and Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) reached new mutliyear highs of $93.73 and $69.88 per share, respectively.

Colgate-Palmolive recently said it would buy back 50 million of its shares. The company also completed the acquisition of the Sanex personal care brand from Unilever (NYSE: UL) earlier this summer. New York-based Colgate produces oral care products, soaps, deodorants, laundry detergents, pet foods and the like. It has a market cap of $45.6 million.

Its dividend yield is 2.5% and the return on equity is 89.1%. The P/E ratio is in line with the industry average and the long-term EPS growth forecast is 9.3%. The share price is more than 24% higher than a year ago, as well as up more than 8% in the past month. The stock has outperformed competitors such as Clorox (NYSE: CLX) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) over the past six months.

Kimberly-Clark is a Jim Cramer favorite that recently announced it would open product development centers in Colombia and South Korea. Its dividend has averaged 7.7% annual growth over the past five years. Founded in 1872, the Dallas-based company is known for disposable diapers, facial tissues, paper towels and surgical gowns. It sports a market cap of $27.3 billion.

Analysts expect revenues to be 6.7% higher in the current quarter. The return on equity is 32.5% and the dividend yield is 4.0%. The P/E ratio is lower than the industry average and forecast to go lower. Shares are trading more than 14% higher year to date and have risen almost 7% in the past month. The stock has also outperformed competitor Procter & Gamble over the past six months.