ECOLAB INC. vs UNILEVER PLC, two Household Products stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Where ECL and UL diverge most: on revenue growth, ECL reads +7.2% and UL reads -0.4%; on debt / equity, ECL reads 1.31 and UL reads 0.00. The rest of the comparable metrics sit closer together. What ECL's price implies is a somewhat stretched bet versus history (whole-company basis). The bull and bear cases for each are in their full reports below.
| Metric | ECL | UL |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $281.80 | $62.25 |
| Market cap | $79.5B | $136.0B |
| Sector | Household Products | Household Products |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +20.0% | — |
| P/E | 37.8 | 13.2 |
| P/B | 7.89 | 7.11 |
| P/S | 4.72 | 2.48 |
| EV/EBITDA | 26.1 | 11.7 |
| Revenue growth | +7.2% | -0.4% |
| Gross margin | — | 47.0% |
| Operating margin | 17.2% | 17.9% |
| Net margin | 12.6% | 19.8% |
| Return on equity | 21.0% | 56.9% |
| Return on assets | 7.1% | 14.2% |
| Return on invested capital | 9.5% | 36.7% |
| FCF yield | 2.4% | 5.5% |
| Dividend yield | 0.9% | — |
| Debt / equity | 1.31 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 1.84 | 0.79 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 3.88 | 2.48 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 7 / 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.