ECOLAB INC. vs THE ESTEE LAUDER COMPANIES INC., two Household Products stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Where ECL and EL diverge most: on operating margin, ECL reads 17.2% and EL reads -1.1%; on net margin, ECL reads 12.6% and EL reads 1.2%. The rest of the comparable metrics sit closer together. On valuation, today's ECL price has a different growth bar priced in than EL (+20.0% implied for ECL vs +23.5% for EL); the higher figure is the steeper assumption to clear, not a better or worse stock. What ECL's price implies is a somewhat stretched bet versus history (whole-company basis). What EL's price implies is a bet that sits within the historical range (whole-company basis). The bull and bear cases for each are in their full reports below.
| Metric | ECL | EL |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $281.80 | $98.03 |
| Market cap | $79.5B | $35.8B |
| Sector | Household Products | Household Products |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +20.0% | +23.5% |
| P/E | 37.8 | 196.1 |
| P/B | 7.89 | 9.41 |
| P/S | 4.72 | 2.38 |
| EV/EBITDA | 26.1 | 25.1 |
| Revenue growth | +7.2% | +5.0% |
| Gross margin | — | 75.5% |
| Operating margin | 17.2% | -1.1% |
| Net margin | 12.6% | 1.2% |
| Return on equity | 21.0% | 4.8% |
| Return on assets | 7.1% | 0.9% |
| Return on invested capital | 9.5% | 5.5% |
| FCF yield | 2.4% | 3.7% |
| Dividend yield | 0.9% | 1.4% |
| Debt / equity | 1.31 | 1.92 |
| Current ratio | 1.84 | 1.22 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 3.88 | 7.64 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 5 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.