Colgate's sales disappoint, shares fall

(Reuters) - Colgate-Palmolive Co's quarterly sales just met analysts' estimates on Friday as demand in emerging markets including Latin America was below its expectations, sending its shares down 3 percent in premarket trading.

Growth in organic sales slowed in the first quarter from the previous quarter, even as the company spent more on advertising and cut prices to spur demand.

"The first quarter was a challenging one as category growth remained soft in many markets around the world," Chief Executive Officer Ian Cook said in a statement.

The company said organic sales increased 1.5 percent due to flat unit volume growth in emerging markets.

Net sales rose 6.4 percent to $4 billion, compared with the average analyst estimate of $4.02 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Net income rose to $634 million, or 72 cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from $570 million, or 64 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding certain items, the company earned 74 cents per share. Analysts on average had expected 72 cents.

(Reporting by Vibhuti Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)