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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Ecolab (ECL - Free Report) . Shares have added about 2.4% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Ecolab due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

Ecolab Q2 Earnings and Revenues Beat EstimatesEcolab has reported fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share of $2.08, up 14.9% year over year. The bottom line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.8%.

GAAP earnings per share for the quarter was $1.98, up 19.3% year over year.

Full-year adjusted earnings per share was $7.53, reflecting a 13.2% increase from the year-ago period. The metric topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny.

ECL’s Revenue Details

Revenues grossed $4.19 billion in the reported quarter, up 4.8% year over year. The metric topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.1%.

Ecolab’s organic sales were $4 billion, up 2.9% from the prior-year period.

Ecolab Digital sales increased 24% to $99 million, with double-digit growth across both software and enabling hardware subscriptions.

Full-year revenues were $16.08 billion, reflecting a 2.2% improvement from the year-ago period on a reported basis (up 3% on an organic basis). The metric lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.2%.

Ecolab’s Segmental Analysis

The Global Water segment’s fixed currency sales of $2.02 billion marked 2.5% year-over-year growth. Organic sales were $2 billion, up 2.2% year over year. The segment’s underlying sales grew mid-single digits, excluding Basic Industries and Paper. Light & Heavy’s progress was led by strength in Global High-Tech, improved growth in downstream and solid gains in manufacturing, which offset softer sales in Basic Industries. Robust new business gains in Food & Beverage, which leveraged the One Ecolab growth strategy, drove a further acceleration in sales growth. Lower Paper sales reflected new business wins that were offset by soft customer production rates.

The Global Institutional & Specialty arm’s fixed currency sales were $1.49 billion, a year-over-year uptick of 2.8% on a reported basis. Organic sales were also $1.49 billion, up 2.7% year over year. Institutional unit’s underlying performance reflected good growth with hospitality customers and modestly higher sales to hospitals. Specialty unit delivered continued strong sales growth, driven by robust new business wins and continued value pricing.

The Global Pest Elimination segment’s fixed currency sales of $307.2 million improved 6.7% year over year on a reported basis. Organic sales were $306.8 million, up 6.6% year over year. Strong organic sales growth was led by robust gains in food & beverage, restaurants and food retail, which continue to benefit from the One Ecolab growth strategy.

The Global Life Sciences arm’s fixed currency sales and organic sales were $191.4 million each, reflecting year-over-year growth of 6.5% on both a reported and organic basis. Per management, year-over-year fixed currency and organic sales growth was driven by continued double-digit growth in bioprocessing and strong growth in pharmaceutical & personal care despite ongoing capacity constraints within Life Sciences’ industrial water purification business.

ECL’s Q4 Margin Analysis

In the quarter under review, Ecolab’s gross profit improved 6.4% year over year to $1.85 billion. The gross margin expanded 69 basis points (bps) to 44%.

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 1% year over year to $1.06 billion.

Adjusted operating profit totaled $786.6 million, increasing 14.6% from the prior-year quarter. The adjusted operating margin in the quarter expanded 162 bps to 18.7%.

Ecolab’s Financial Position

The company exited fourth-quarter 2025 with cash and cash equivalents of $646.2 million compared with $1.96 billion at the end of the third quarter. Total debt at the end of fourth-quarter 2025 was $8.24 billion compared with $8.07 billion at third-quarter end.

Meanwhile, Ecolab has a consistent dividend-paying history, with five-year annualized dividend growth of 8.09%.

ECL’s Guidance for Q1 & 2026

Ecolab has provided its outlook for the first quarter and has initiated the full-year 2026 guidance.

The company expects adjusted earnings per share of $1.67-$1.73 for the first quarter, suggesting an 11%-15% rally from the year-ago period’s actual. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.69.

Including the acquisition of Ovivo Electronics, ECL expects reported sales to increase 7%-9% and organic sales to rise 3%-4% in 2026.

For 2026, Ecolab expects adjusted earnings per share of $8.43-$8.63 (indicating an uptick of 12%-15% from the comparable 2024 period’s reported number). The Zacks Consensus Estimate for adjusted earnings per share is pegged at $8.44.

Ecolab has reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $2.09 per share, up 10.6% year over year. The figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.4%.

GAAP earnings per share for the quarter was $1.90, up 3.3% year over year.

Revenues rose 9.7% year over year to $4.42 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate by 0.5%. Organic sales increased 5%, aided by stronger pricing, volume growth and solid demand across Ecolab’s core businesses and growth engines.

ECL’s Sales Growth AcceleratesEcolab’s Digital sales increased 27% year over year to $121 million, driven by strong growth across software and enabling hardware subscriptions.

Organic sales were $4.28 billion, up 5% from $4.09 billion in the year-ago quarter. Reported volume increased 1% despite a nearly 1% headwind from customer operations disrupted by the Middle East conflict. Pricing improved to 4%, reflecting the initial benefits of the company’s energy surcharge implementation.

Ecolab’s Core Businesses Gain MomentumThe Global Water segment’s fixed-currency sales increased 10% year over year to $2.22 billion, including a 6% contribution from the Ovivo Electronics acquisition. Organic sales rose 4%, led by 29% growth in Global High-Tech and accelerating gains in Food & Beverage and Light Water.

Organic operating income for the segment increased 1% to $333.6 million. Improved pricing gradually offset higher commodity costs and growth-related investments. Meanwhile, the impact of softer demand in Heavy Water and Paper continued to ease on the back of new business wins.

The Global Institutional & Specialty segment’s fixed-currency and organic sales increased 4% each to $1.62 billion. Institutional benefited from improved growth among hospitality customers, while Specialty posted mid-single-digit growth, supported by share gains in quick-service restaurants and food retail.

ECL’s Growth Engines Stay StrongThe Global Pest Elimination segment’s fixed-currency sales rose 9% year over year to $350.5 million. Organic sales increased 7%, driven by strong gains across restaurants, food retail and food and beverage. Targeted acquisitions in North America contributed 2% to growth.

The segment’s organic operating income increased 12% year over year to $70.3 million. Strong sales growth and improved productivity more than offset continued investments in the business, including pest intelligence capabilities.

The Global Life Sciences segment’s fixed-currency and organic sales increased 15% each to $221 million. The improvement was driven by continued share gains in bioprocessing and pharmaceutical and personal care, along with better performance in purification.

Organic operating income surged 46% year over year to $58.5 million, reflecting accelerated sales growth and strong bioprocessing performance. These gains more than offset higher commodity costs and investments in innovation, capacity and global capabilities.

ECL’s Margin AnalysisIn the quarter under review, Ecolab’s reported gross profit increased 8% year over year to $1.95 billion. However, the reported gross margin contracted 70 basis points (bps) to 44.1%. Adjusted gross margin declined 60 bps to 44.2%, reflecting the impact of the Ovivo Electronics acquisition. Organic gross margin improved 10 bps to 44.9% as stronger pricing offset rising commodity costs.

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 6.9% year over year to $1.14 billion.

Adjusted operating profit totaled $809 million, up 9.7% from the prior-year quarter. The adjusted operating margin remained unchanged at 18.3%, while the organic operating margin expanded 40 bps to 18.8%.

Ecolab’s Financial PositionEcolab exited the second quarter of 2026 with cash and cash equivalents of $5.14 billion, up sharply from $519.8 million at the end of the first quarter. Total debt increased to $13.18 billion from $8.49 billion over the same period.

The sequential jump in cash appears to be primarily financing-driven. Ecolab raised new debt to fund recent acquisitions, including CoolIT, and a portion of those proceeds was likely still held in cash at quarter-end. Net interest expense also increased to $73.1 million from $63.2 million a year earlier, reflecting the impact of acquisition-related borrowings. Ecolab repurchased approximately 1.2 million shares during the quarter.

Meanwhile, Ecolab has a consistent dividend-paying history, with five-year annualized dividend growth of 8.75%.

ECL Raises 2026 Earnings OutlookEcolab raised its 2026 adjusted earnings guidance to $8.05-$8.25 per share from $8.03-$8.23. The revised range indicates growth of 7%-10% and incorporates short-term non-cash amortization and financing costs related to the CoolIT acquisition.

For the third quarter, ECL expects adjusted earnings of $2.13-$2.23 per share, representing growth of 3%-8%. In the second half, reported sales are projected to increase 12%-14%, while organic sales growth is expected to accelerate to 6%-7%.

Management expects second-half adjusted operating margin of approximately 19% and organic operating margin of about 20%. Accelerating pricing, ongoing share gains and improved productivity are expected to support the outlook.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?In the past month, investors have witnessed a upward trend in estimates review.

VGM ScoresCurrently, Ecolab has a average Growth Score of C, however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with a B. However, the stock was allocated a grade of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for value investors.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

OutlookEstimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Interestingly, Ecolab has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). We expect a below average return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry PlayerEcolab belongs to the Zacks Chemical - Specialty industry. Another stock from the same industry, Element Solutions (ESI - Free Report) , has gained 3.5% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended June 2026.

Element Solutions reported revenues of $977.9 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +56.4%. EPS of $0.47 for the same period compares with $0.37 a year ago.

For the current quarter, Element Solutions is expected to post earnings of $0.48 per share, indicating a change of +17.1% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +3.3% over the last 30 days.

Element Solutions has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of D.

Key Takeaways Ecolab shares gained 12.2% in three months as improving operating momentum supported the advance.High-Tech organic sales rose 29%, while Digital sales climbed 27% and Life Sciences advanced 15%.Ecolab raised 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $8.05-$8.25, but higher debt and financing costs remain risks. Ecolab Inc. (ECL - Free Report) shares have gained 12.2% over the past three months, drawing attention to whether improving operating momentum can sustain the advance.

Faster growth in High-Tech, Digital and Life Sciences, firmer pricing and a higher 2026 earnings outlook support the case. Elevated debt, acquisition-related financing costs and macroeconomic uncertainty remain offsets.

Ecolab’s High-Tech Growth Strengthens the Bull CaseGlobal High-Tech organic sales rose 29% in the second quarter of 2026, while fixed-currency sales increased 139% with help from Ovivo Electronics. The platform is approaching $1.5 billion in annualized sales.

Management expects Global High-Tech, including Ovivo and CoolIT, to grow more than 25% annually and reach $4 billion in sales by 2030, with a 25% operating income margin. CoolIT also expands Ecolab’s data-center cooling capabilities.

ECL’s Digital and Life Sciences Engines Add MomentumEcolab Digital sales increased 27% in the second quarter, and management continues to target long-term growth above 20%. Connected monitoring and software broaden the company’s recurring technology opportunity across its installed base.

Global Life Sciences organic sales advanced 15%, while organic operating income surged 46% to $58.5 million. Share gains in bioprocessing and strength in pharmaceutical and personal-care applications added another faster-growing earnings stream.

Ecolab’s Pricing and Margins Support the AdvanceSecond-quarter organic sales increased 5%, supported by 4% pricing and 1% volume growth despite an approximately 1% headwind from Middle East customer disruptions. Organic operating margin expanded 40 basis points to 18.8%.

Management expects pricing of 5%-6% in the second half and an organic operating margin of about 20%. Productivity and One Ecolab savings should help offset higher commodity costs, although continued pricing execution remains important.

ECL’s Higher Debt Could Check Further UpsideTotal debt climbed to $13.18 billion at the end of the second quarter from $8.49 billion at the end of the first quarter. Net interest expense rose to $73.1 million from $63.2 million a year earlier.

The CoolIT acquisition increases Ecolab’s data-center exposure but also raises financing and integration risk. Competitive pressure remains relevant as Pentair plc (PNR - Free Report) operates across residential, commercial and industrial water solutions, while STERIS plc (STE - Free Report) provides infection-prevention products and services to healthcare and life-sciences customers.

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Ecolab’s Outlook Tests Whether the Rally Can ContinueEcolab raised its 2026 adjusted earnings guidance to $8.05-$8.25 per share, representing expected growth of 7%-10%. The company also projects 6%-7% organic sales growth in the second half.

Execution remains the key test. Geopolitical disruption, energy volatility, softer Heavy Water demand and pricing pressure could constrain results even as High-Tech and other growth engines gain scale.

ECL’s Cautious Rank Tempers the 12.2% RallyThe operating backdrop has improved, but the recent share-price gain now sits against higher leverage and near-term acquisition-related costs. That mix leaves the next phase of the rally dependent on continued sales growth and margin delivery.

Ecolab currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Its Momentum Score of A is the strongest Style Score, while the Value Score of F, Growth Score of C and VGM Score of D point to a less favorable value, growth and blended profile. Because Style Scores complement rather than override the Zacks Rank, the current setup remains cautious despite the stock’s recent momentum.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Key Takeaways Ecolab adds CoolIT's direct-to-chip cooling to broaden its data-center infrastructure offering.ECL targets more than 25% annual High-Tech growth and $4B in sales by 2030 after the CoolIT deal.Ecolab's debt rose to $13.18B, while higher interest and acquisition costs create near-term pressure. Ecolab Inc. (ECL - Free Report) has expanded its artificial intelligence infrastructure exposure with the $4.75 billion acquisition of CoolIT Systems. The deal gives Ecolab a larger role in data-center cooling as demand for high-density computing grows.

The strategic opportunity is sizable, but so is the financial commitment. Higher debt, increased interest expense and acquisition-related costs mean investors must weigh faster High-Tech growth against a more leveraged balance sheet.

Ecolab's CoolIT Deal Broadens Its AI Infrastructure BetCoolIT adds coolant distribution units, cold plates and direct-to-chip cooling technologies to Ecolab's existing water treatment, coolant chemistry and 3D TRASAR capabilities. Management plans to combine those assets into an integrated cooling platform for high-density data centers.

The broader offering is designed to manage cooling performance, water use, energy consumption and computing uptime. That expands Ecolab's role from individual water and chemistry applications toward a more complete data-center cooling solution.

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ECL Targets Faster High-Tech Growth Through 2030Global High-Tech is approaching $1.5 billion in annualized sales, compared with about $150 million in 2021. Including Ovivo Electronics and CoolIT, management expects the platform to grow more than 25% annually and reach $4 billion in sales by 2030.

Ecolab also targets a 25% operating income margin for the platform. Those goals are above its prior expectations of more than 20% growth and a 20% margin, reflecting management's higher expectations after adding CoolIT.

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Ecolab's Cooling Platform Could Lift Data Center SalesManagement estimates that adding CoolIT can increase Ecolab's sales opportunity in a data center by three to five times versus its legacy offering. The combination of hardware, water management, chemistry and digital monitoring gives the company more products and services to sell within each facility.

The theme also places Ecolab alongside other companies expanding liquid-cooling capacity. Vertiv Holdings Co. (VRT - Free Report) offers direct-to-chip liquid cooling within its data-center infrastructure portfolio, while nVent Electric plc (NVT - Free Report) is expanding manufacturing capacity for liquid-cooling solutions used in artificial intelligence and high-performance computing environments.

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ECL Takes on More Debt and Financing CostsThe acquisition strategy has raised Ecolab's financial burden. Total debt reached $13.18 billion at the end of the second quarter of 2026, up from $8.49 billion at the end of the first quarter as the company raised debt to fund recent acquisitions, including CoolIT.

Net interest expense increased to $73.1 million from $63.2 million a year earlier. Ecolab's 2026 earnings outlook also incorporates short-term non-cash amortization and financing costs tied to CoolIT, creating a near-term earnings offset to the deal's growth potential.

Ecolab's Core Risks Could Limit Deal PayoffHigh-Tech growth does not remove pressure elsewhere. Middle East disruption reduced companywide volume growth by about 1 percentage point in the second quarter, while Heavy Water organic sales fell 1% and Paper sales were flat amid softer industrial demand.

Energy and commodity volatility remain additional risks because Ecolab relies on pricing and productivity to protect margins. Integration adds another execution demand as the company works to scale CoolIT while maintaining performance across its existing businesses.

ECL's Underperform Signal Tempers the AI UpsideCoolIT gives Ecolab a larger addressable opportunity in data-center cooling, but higher leverage and acquisition-related costs raise the bar for execution. The long-term High-Tech targets are favorable, while the balance-sheet trade-off remains meaningful in the near term.

ECL currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Its Momentum Score of A is favorable, but the Value Score of F, Growth Score of C and VGM Score of D present a more mixed Style Score picture. Because Zacks Style Scores are intended to complement the Zacks Rank rather than override it, the current readings support a cautious view despite the AI-related growth opportunity.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Ecolab (ECL - Free Report) came out with quarterly earnings of $2.09 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.08 per share. This compares to earnings of $1.89 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +0.48%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this cleaning, food-safety and pest-control services company would post earnings of $1.7 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.7, delivering no surprise.

Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times.

Ecolab, which belongs to the Zacks Chemical - Specialty industry, posted revenues of $4.42 billion for the quarter ended June 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.40%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $4.03 billion. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters.

The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call.

Ecolab shares have added about 3.4% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 8.3%.

What's Next for Ecolab?While Ecolab has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock?

There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.

Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Ecolab was unfavorable. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to underperform the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $2.15 on $4.7 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and $8.18 on $17.88 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year.

Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Chemical - Specialty is currently in the top 35% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.

Another stock from the same industry, Mativ Holdings (MATV - Free Report) , has yet to report results for the quarter ended June 2026. The results are expected to be released on August 5.

This paper and reconstituted tobacco company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.28 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -15.2%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.

Mativ Holdings' revenues are expected to be $508.5 million, down 3.2% from the year-ago quarter.

Key Takeaways Ecolab closed its $4.75B CoolIT deal, adding direct liquid cooling for AI data centers.CoolIT's technology complements Ecolab's water treatment and digital monitoring capabilities.Ecolab expects High-Tech annual sales to reach $4B by 2030, with about 25% margins. Ecolab (ECL - Free Report) completed its previously announced acquisition of direct liquid cooling specialist CoolIT Systems for approximately $4.75 billion, earlier than expected. The deal significantly strengthens Ecolab's presence in the rapidly expanding AI infrastructure market by adding advanced liquid cooling technologies for high-density data centers to its portfolio.

From an investor's perspective, the acquisition marks another major step in Ecolab's strategy to transform its High-Tech business into a key long-term growth driver. By combining CoolIT's direct liquid cooling solutions with its existing water treatment and digital monitoring capabilities, Ecolab is positioning itself to capitalize on surging AI infrastructure investments while expanding its addressable market across semiconductor fabs, power generation and AI data centers.

Management expects the High-Tech business to reach $4 billion in annual sales by 2030, supporting sustained organic revenue growth, margin expansion and double-digit earnings growth over the long term despite near-term acquisition-related costs.

Likely Trend of ECL Stock Following the NewsShares of ECL have traded flat since the announcement yesterday. In the year-to-date period, shares of the company have gained 7.9% compared with the industry’s 16.1% growth. The S&P 500 increased 9.6% in the same time frame.

The CoolIT acquisition is expected to significantly strengthen Ecolab's long-term growth prospects by establishing the company as a comprehensive solutions provider across the AI infrastructure value chain. The addition of direct liquid cooling technology complements Ecolab's existing expertise in ultra-pure water, power and digital optimization solutions, enabling it to offer integrated offerings for semiconductor manufacturing and AI data centers.

As demand for high-density computing continues to rise, the acquisition should accelerate the expansion of Ecolab's High-Tech segment, deepen relationships with hyperscale customers and create cross-selling opportunities. Combined with the planned launch of its integrated 3D TRASAR cooling platform, the deal is expected to support faster revenue growth, higher operating margins and stronger recurring service revenues over the long term.

ECL currently has a market capitalization of $78.34 billion.

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More on the NewsFollowing the acquisition, Ecolab plans to introduce an end-to-end 3D TRASAR cooling platform at the Supercomputing conference in November 2026. The platform will combine CoolIT's cooling distribution units and high-performance cold plates with Ecolab's digital 3D TRASAR optimization technology and advanced cooling fluids. Designed for next-generation AI systems, including NVIDIA's Vera Rubin and Grace Blackwell architectures, the solution will provide real-time monitoring of cooling system performance, helping customers reduce cooling power consumption, improve energy efficiency and move toward a near-zero water footprint through closed-loop cooling technologies.

The integrated offering further expands Ecolab's capabilities across the AI infrastructure value chain, spanning ultra-pure water solutions for semiconductor manufacturing, water management for power generation and advanced liquid cooling for AI data centers.

The acquisition also significantly scales Ecolab's Global High-Tech business. Annualized sales from the segment have increased from approximately $150 million in 2021 to nearly $1.5 billion in 2026 following the acquisitions of Ovivo and CoolIT. Management now expects the business to generate $4 billion in annual sales by 2030 while delivering operating margins of about 25%, making it the company's largest growth engine. Backed by annual growth exceeding 25%, the segment is projected to contribute more than two percentage points to Ecolab's annual sales growth.

While the CoolIT acquisition is expected to create short-term earnings headwinds from non-cash amortization and financing costs, the company continues to project organic sales growth of 5-7%, annual operating margin expansion of 100-150 basis points and adjusted earnings per share (EPS) growth of 12-15% over the long term as acquisition synergies strengthen and the amortization impact from the Nalco acquisition begins to roll off after 2027.

Favorable Industry Prospect for ECLPer a report by Grand View Research, the global data center liquid cooling market size was estimated at $6.65 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $29.46 billion by 2033, expanding at a CAGR of 20.1% from 2026 to 2033.

The rapid escalation of computing density, driven by AI, machine learning and high-performance computing workloads, is fueling the growth of the market. 

A Recent Development by ECLIn April, ECL introduced Ecolab Water Navigator IQ, an AI-enabled platform that provides businesses with a comprehensive, enterprise-wide view of water performance and converts insights into actionable outcomes.

Water Navigator IQ unifies site-level data and predictive analytics in a single platform. It helps organizations track water usage, compare performance and align water strategies with business goals.

ECL’s Zacks Rank & Key PicksCurrently, ECL carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Globus Medical (GMED - Free Report) , West Pharmaceutical (WST - Free Report) and Intuitive Surgical (ISRG - Free Report) .

Globus Medical, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), reported a first-quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of $1.12, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 22.1%. Revenues of $759.9 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.0%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

GMED has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 10.2% compared with the industry’s 12.6% growth. The company’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 26.3%.

West Pharmaceutical, currently flaunting a Zacks Rank #1, reported first-quarter 2026 EPS of $2.13, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 26.8%. Revenues of $844.9 million surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 8.5%.

WST has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 13.9% compared with the industry’s 9.5% growth. The company’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 19.4%.

Intuitive Surgical, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present, reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of $2.50, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 20.2%. Revenues of $2.77 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6.2%.

ISRG has a long-term estimated growth rate of 14.6% compared with the industry’s 12.6% growth. The company’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 16.8%.