ECOLAB INC.
ECL · Materials · $75.8B mkt cap · FY2025 filings · Shallow moat ·
Doesn't clear the bar
The five investor questions
2021–2025 (latest 5 aligned FYs; v3 window cap 5): revenue $12.7B to $16.1B, increasing; diluted EPS 3.91 to 7.28, increasing.
Median gross margin 42.2% over 10y, very stable.
Median ROIC 10.3%, above the 12% hurdle in 20% of years.
Net debt/EBITDA 2.0x, interest coverage 9x.
Owner earnings changed +5.0%/yr over up to the ten most recent annual observations.
Price vs. value if growth stopped today
A cautious baseline, not a price target: what the shares may support if normalized owner earnings simply hold steady.
- $1.5B
- $59.94
- $59.94
- $268.75
- 348% above value if growth stopped today
What today’s price assumes: owner earnings growing ~35%/yr over 5 years. The zero-growth estimate assumes owner earnings stay flat (0% growth).
How to read this
We solve for the constant annual change in owner earnings that would make the five-year zero-growth estimate equal today’s price. This keeps the existing model inputs and calculation unchanged; it is an expectations lens, not a forecast.
This zero-growth estimate assumes trailing owner earnings persist — unreliable for declining businesses. Flag status unavailable — four adjacent recent FY revenue observations are required.
Among the current top-score group, the median current price is 239% above the zero-growth estimate across 48 of the current top 50 companies by Moat Score with both values.
Score records captured Jul 26, 2026.
Exactly which 50 companies?
FTNT, META, MEDP, IBEX, MSFT, GOOGL, LULU, ANF, IDXX, TXRH, FHI, QLYS, FFIV, ADBE, LLY, MANH, VEEV, GRMN, SSD, MNST, DOCS, MCO, CPRT, NTAP, LRCX, NVDA, CORT, SFM, MPTI, ULTA, SN, RMD, ROL, PAYC, IRMD, INTU, DECK, MORN, LGCY, DAL, GWW, ISRG, MPWR, CTAS, LOPE, MRK, CMG, FAST, BKNG, ORLY
Missing a usable price or zero-growth estimate: ANF, BKNG.
Model details under moat-index@3.0.0: zero-growth multiple 11.1×, capped-growth comparison at no more than 18×; 9% discount rate; high-end growth 0% (capped at 4%) using min(5y revenue CAGR, 5y diluted-EPS CAGR), clamped to 0%–4%; maintenance capex uses min(capex, D&A); abstain when D&A is unavailable. This is a disclosed model range, not intrinsic value as fact.
Fundamentals
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Visual explainers
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Moat Score history
Breaks in the line mark methodology or normalizer upgrades — readings across versions aren’t compared, so a level shift there isn’t a change in the business.
Tier changesSame-methodology and same-normalizer crossings of the Wide / Narrow / Shallow bars
- Normalizer upgraded unstamped (version unknown)tomoat-xbrl-normalizer@1.1.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 26, 2026
- Methodology upgraded moat-index@2.0.0tomoat-index@3.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 23, 2026
- Methodology upgraded moat-index@1.2.0tomoat-index@2.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 20, 2026
Scores are logged append-only and never overwritten — this record cannot be reconstructed retroactively, which is exactly why it’s worth keeping.
Insider activity
Form 4 reports mix P/S market or private transactions with compensation-plan mechanics. Activity casually described as “insider selling” can include compensation mechanics; awards, tax withholding, and option exercises are shown by their exact filed class here, never collapsed into “Bought” or “Sold.”
These are disclosed filing facts and arithmetic aggregates, not a signal or verdict.
The insider-filing service is temporarily unavailable, so no partial or guessed answer is shown for ECL.
Materials context
#55 of 309 scored Materials companies, ranked by Moat Score.
Nearest peers by Moat Score
- #53CNR Core Natural Resources, Inc.60.0 out of 100, Narrow moatNarrow moat
- #54NCSM NCS Multistage Holdings, Inc.59.8 out of 100, Shallow moatShallow moat
- #56AXIL AXIL Brands, Inc.59.2 out of 100, Shallow moatShallow moat
- #57KMB KIMBERLY-CLARK CORPORATION58.7 out of 100, Shallow moatShallow moat
Compare ECL with its nearest peers →All Materials companies on the Index →
Common questions about ECL
- Does ECOLAB INC. have an economic moat?
- Based on its FY2025 SEC filings, the Moat Index scores ECOLAB INC. (ECL) 59.7 out of 100 — a Shallow moat. The five questions behind that score begin at 20% each; if exactly one genuinely lacks data, the other four weights are renormalized and disclosed. revenue and EPS trend 92, pricing power 70, returns on capital 30, balance-sheet safety 44, capital allocation 62.
- Is ECL trading below the conservative owner-earnings estimate?
- The value if growth stopped today — a zero-growth baseline — is $59.94 per share. It capitalizes normalized owner earnings at a 9% rate and assumes 0% growth. Versus a recent price of $268.75, that is 348% above value if growth stopped today. The model also publishes a capped-growth comparison, but the zero-growth estimate is the cautious baseline. It assumes trailing owner earnings persist and is unreliable for declining businesses. This is an educational estimate from primary SEC filings, not intrinsic value as a fact or investment advice.
- How has ECL's Moat Score changed over time?
- The record logs 16 readings since Jul 17, 2026; the latest reads 59.7 out of 100 (shallow moat). No tier changes on record yet. (Methodology or normalizer upgrades on Jul 20, 2026, Jul 23, 2026, Jul 26, 2026 re-based the score; readings across versions aren't compared.) The history is append-only — readings are only ever added, never rewritten.