Buffett Brain · Research note
Score updated 22 Oct 2026 · analysis from 1 Jun 2026
PG· Consumer Staples
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a wonderful soap-and-diaper machine selling at a rich 21 times earnings.
Buffett fit
Partial fit
Owner
63
Durability
77
Management
51
Price
44
Score updated 22 Oct 2026 · analysis from 1 Jun 2026
Buffett's checklist
Each number against Buffett's bar, and where it ranks among Consumer Staples stocks in our database.
How much profit the business makes on each dollar invested in it. Higher is better.
What is left of each sale after the cost of making the product. A high number often means pricing power.
The cash the business earns for its owners, compared with the price of the whole company.
How fast sales grew each year over the last five years.
How many years of today's profit you pay for at today's price. Lower means cheaper.
How much the company owes compared with what it owns outright. Lower is safer.
The four pillars
How the business measures up on each of Buffett's four tests.
If I owned all of Procter & Gamble outright, I would be pleased with the operation and annoyed at the asking price.
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Durability is the strongest thing here, scoring 77, and it is well earned.
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Management gets a middling 51 from me, and the numbers explain why. Returns on capital are good but slipping, with five-year at 18.1 percent against a trailing 15.5 percent, so each new dollar invested earns a little less.
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There is no here, and that is the whole point of the unclear verdict.
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For and against
The strongest points on each side, with the numbers behind them.
In its favor
7- 1 of 50.3 percent shows customers willingly pay a premium for the brands rather than buy private label.
- 2 of 23.2 percent is excellent for a consumer staples maker and reflects real .
- 3Durability score of 77 with zero meaningful annual earnings decline confirms the business holds up in any economy.
- 4Interest coverage of nearly 49 times and net debt at just 1.06 times EBITDA leave the balance sheet in fine shape.
Concerns
7- 1At 21 times earnings the valuation is rich, leaving an owner-earnings yield of only 4.1 percent with no .
- 2Revenue growth of just 2.6 percent a year means the business is barely outpacing inflation on the top line.
- 3Returns on capital are sliding, with trailing of 15.5 percent below the five-year mark of 18.1 percent.
- 4EPS growth of 4 percent is modest, so most future return must come from the dividend and small .
Price history
$157+11.4%· 5-year return
Weekly closing prices. Touch or hover the line for a date.
The business
How the business works
Procter & Gamble sells everyday brands like Tide, Pampers, and Gillette that people buy on schedule whether the economy is up or down. That repeatability shows in a 50.3 percent and a 23.2 percent , fat numbers for a business that puts soap in a box. The trouble is the top line barely moves, growing 2.6 percent a year, so the whole game is squeezing a bit more profit out of slow-growing volume.
How this analysis has moved
The call has held across 5 reviews.
Sep 27, 2026 → Oct 22, 2026
What other investors would say
The same company, judged by three other documented playbooks.
Keep researching
Similar companies in Consumer Staples
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