Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) shares moved higher Tuesday after the company topped fourth-quarter (Q4) expectations and delivered an upbeat outlook.
Adjusted EPS came in at $2.08, edging past consensus of $2.07, while revenue of $4.196 billion slightly exceeded estimates. Sales rose 5% year over year, with 3% organic growth, as margins expanded and operating income climbed.
Adjusted gross profit increased to $1.85 billion from $1.74 billion a year ago, lifting gross margin to 44.1%. Organic operating income rose 12% year over year, supported by stronger sales and productivity gains, with adjusted organic operating margin expanding 140 basis points to 18.5%.
The St. Paul, Minnesota-based company ended the quarter with $646 million in cash and equivalents.
By segment, Global Water and Global Institutional & Specialty each posted 3% fixed-currency sales growth, while Global Pest Elimination and Global Life Sciences both delivered 7% growth on a reported and organic basis.
Looking ahead, Ecolab guided first-quarter FY26 adjusted EPS to $1.67–$1.73, in line with expectations. For full-year 2026, including the Ovivo Electronics acquisition, the company forecast 7%–9% reported sales growth and 3%–4% organic growth, with momentum building through the year.
Ecolab expects operating margin expansion of 100–150 basis points and adjusted EPS of $8.43–$8.63, roughly in line with Wall Street forecasts, while boosting projected productivity savings under its One Ecolab initiative to $325 million by 2027.
CEO Christophe Beck said distributor inventory pressures should largely normalize in the first quarter of 2026, with volume growth expected to rebound to 1% at the end of the quarter and accelerate as the year progresses.
Price Action: ECL shares are trading higher by 3.83% to $299 at the last check on Tuesday.
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