Ecolab (ECL) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Ecolab Inc., headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a global provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies and services. Founded in 1923 as Economics Laboratory, the company has grown into a leading supplier of cleaning and sanitizing solutions designed to improve operational efficiency and ensure safety in a variety of industries. Over nearly a century, Ecolab has built a reputation for innovation in chemical engineering and service delivery, supporting customers’ sustainability goals and regulatory compliance worldwide.

The company’s core offerings include water treatment and management systems that help industrial and institutional clients conserve water and reduce energy consumption. In addition, Ecolab supplies a broad portfolio of cleaning and disinfecting chemicals, automated dispensing equipment and monitoring technologies for the foodservice, hospitality and healthcare sectors. Ecolab also delivers comprehensive pest elimination programs and infection prevention solutions, enabling hospitals, restaurants and manufacturing facilities to meet stringent public health standards.

Operating in more than 170 countries, Ecolab serves food and beverage processors, hotel chains, healthcare institutions, industrial manufacturers and oil and gas producers. Its field service teams provide customized consulting, training and on-site support, while digital platforms such as Analytix™ offer real-time insights into water usage and cleaning efficacy. This combination of products and services allows clients to optimize operations, minimize waste and enhance product quality.

Under the leadership of Chairman and CEO Christophe Beck, Ecolab continues to invest in research and development to address global challenges such as water scarcity, hygiene risks and energy efficiency. The company’s sustainability initiatives aim to foster a circular economy by reducing environmental footprints and promoting responsible resource management across its customer base.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $276.58 to $280.09
• 50-Day Range: $259.74 to $285.32
• 52-Week Range: $221.62 to $286.04
• Volume: 925,307 shs
• Average Volume: 1.08 million shs
• Market Capitalization: $78.62 billion
• P/E Ratio: 37.01
• Dividend Yield: 0.94%
• Price Target: $291.21
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy

Ecolab Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Ecolab scored higher than 94% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 21st out of 189 stocks in the basic materials sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 2.4 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Moderate Buy

Consensus Rating

Ecolab has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The company's average rating score is 2.89, and is based on 11 buy ratings, 5 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Ecolab has been the subject of 7 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 2.5 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 13.00%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Ecolab are expected to grow by 13.00% in the coming year, from $7.54 to $8.52 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Ecolab is 37.01, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 269.60.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Ecolab is 37.01, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Basic Materials sector average P/E ratio of about 146.14.

Price to Earnings Growth Ratio

Ecolab has a PEG Ratio of 2.85. PEG Ratios above 1 indicate that a company could be overvalued.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Ecolab has a P/B Ratio of 8.41. P/B Ratios above 3 indicate that a company could be overvalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 3.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

0.99% of the float of Ecolab has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Ecolab has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Ecolab has recently increased by 14.03%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 3.3 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Strong

Dividend Yield

Ecolab has a dividend yield of 0.93%, which is in the bottom 25% of all stocks that pay dividends.

Dividend Growth

Ecolab has been increasing its dividend for 33 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Ecolab is 34.71%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on earnings estimates, Ecolab will have a dividend payout ratio of 30.52% next year. This indicates that Ecolab will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: 2.2 / 5
• Environmental Score: -2.63

Percentage of Shares Shorted

0.99% of the float of Ecolab has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Ecolab has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Ecolab has recently increased by 14.03%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

News and Social Media

• Score: 3.0 / 5
• News Sentiment: 1.46

News Sentiment

Ecolab has a news sentiment score of 1.46. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a higher news sentiment than the 0.71 average news sentiment score of Basic Materials companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 30 news articles for Ecolab this week, compared to 31 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

5 people have searched for ECL on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 25% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

Only 1 people have added Ecolab to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -75% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 3.3 / 5
• Insider Trading: Selling Shares

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Ecolab insiders have sold 264.31% more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $167,106.00 in company stock and sold $608,778.00 in company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 0.04% of the stock of Ecolab is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

74.91% of the stock of Ecolab is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

ECL Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have ECL shares performed this year?

Ecolab's stock was trading at $234.32 at the start of the year. Since then, ECL stock has increased by 18.3% and is now trading at $277.2040.

How were Ecolab's earnings last quarter?

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July, 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.01. The basic materials company had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a trailing twelve-month return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 13.59%.
Read the conference call transcript.

Does Ecolab have any subsidiaries?

The following companies are subsidiaries of Ecolab: Purolite, EPN Water Col Ltd., National Wiper Alliance Inc., TechTex Holdings Limited, VanBaele Hygiene AG, CID Lines, Gallay Medical & Scientific Pty Ltd., and more.

Who are Ecolab's major shareholders?

Top institutional shareholders of Ecolab include Vanguard Group Inc. (8.70%), State Street Corp (3.95%), Geode Capital Management LLC (1.93%) and Norges Bank (1.11%). Insiders that own company stock include William H Gates III, Christophe Beck, Arthur J Higgins, Victoria Reich, Laurie M Marsh, David Maclennan, Angela M Busch, Larry L Berger, Suzanne M Vautrinot, Nicholas J Alfano, Gregory B Cook, Jennifer J Bradway, Machiel Duijser and Gail Peterson.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Ecolab?

Shares of ECL stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Ecolab own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Ecolab investors own include NVIDIA (NVDA), Meta Platforms (META), Broadcom (AVGO), Adobe (ADBE), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Arista Networks (ANET) and ServiceNow (NOW).

Company Calendar

• Record date for 7/15 Dividend: 6/17/2025
• Ex-Dividend for 7/15 Dividend: 6/17/2025
• Dividend Payable: 7/15/2025
• Last Earnings: 7/29/2025
• Today: 8/29/2025
• Record date for 10/15 Dividend: 9/16/2025
• Ex-Dividend for 10/15 Dividend: 9/16/2025
• Dividend Payable: 10/15/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 11/04/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Industry: CHEM - SPECIALTY
• Sub-Industry: Specialty Chemicals
• Current Symbol: NYSE:ECL
• CIK: 31462
• Web: www.ecolab.com
• Phone: (800) 232-6522
• Fax: 651-293-2092
• Employees: 48,000
• Year Founded: 1923

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Ecolab: $291.21
• High Price Target: $315.00
• Low Price Target: $255.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +5.1%
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.89
• Research Coverage: 19 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $7.49
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 37.01
• Forward P/E Ratio: 36.76
• P/E Growth: 2.85
• Net Income: $2.11 billion
• Net Margins: 13.59%
• Pretax Margin: 17.12%
• Return on Equity: 22.52%
• Return on Assets: 8.86%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.80
• Current Ratio: 1.44
• Quick Ratio: 1.12

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $15.74 billion
• Price / Sales: 4.99
• Cash Flow: $9.97 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 27.80
• Book Value: $32.97 per share
• Price / Book: 8.41

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 283,620,000
• Free Float: 283,512,000
• Market Cap: $78.62 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 1.06