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ECL vs SHW
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Ecolab Inc. (ECL) vs. The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- ECL has outperformed SHW over the past year with approximately 7% returns compared to 2%, driven by strategic acquisitions in AI data center cooling.
- Both stocks trade at premium valuations, with ECL's P/E ratio (price-to-earnings) around 37 and SHW's at 33, reflecting growth expectations in the specialty chemicals sector.
- SHW offers a slightly higher dividend yield near 0.95%, appealing to income-focused investors, while ECL emphasizes growth through recent M&A (mergers and acquisitions).
- ECL benefits from AI infrastructure tailwinds via its $4.75 billion CoolIT Systems deal, contrasting SHW's exposure to softening housing demand.
- Market caps are closely matched at roughly $76 billion for ECL and $84 billion for SHW, underscoring their peer status in materials.
Introduction
Ecolab Inc. (ECL) and The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW) are leading players in the specialty chemicals sector, serving industrial hygiene, water treatment, and coatings markets respectively. This stock comparison analyzes their recent market positioning, performance trends, and growth catalysts amid evolving economic conditions. Traders seeking relative performance insights and investors eyeing materials sector exposure will find value in contrasting their business models, momentum, and risk profiles in today's environment.
ECL Overview and Recent Performance
Ecolab Inc. (ECL) delivers water treatment, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions across global industries like food processing, healthcare, and data centers. In recent market activity, ECL shares have traded around $269, within a 52-week range of $222 to $309, reflecting resilience with year-to-date gains near 3%. Sentiment has been bolstered by the $4.75 billion acquisition of CoolIT Systems, positioning the company in high-growth liquid cooling for AI data centers, alongside steady organic revenue growth of about 5% quarterly. Analyst views mix upgrades on AI tailwinds with cautions on integration risks and pricing pressures, contributing to moderate upward momentum versus broader indices.
SHW Overview and Recent Performance
The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW) manufactures and distributes paints, coatings, and related products through segments like Paint Stores, Consumer Brands, and Performance Coatings, targeting professional and retail customers worldwide. Shares have hovered near $338 in recent weeks, spanning a 52-week range from $302 to $380, with year-to-date returns around 4.5% but lagging one-year gains at 2%. Performance reflects headwinds from rising commodity costs and a softening housing market, tempered by a recent dividend increase to $0.80 per share and anticipation for Q1 earnings. Quarterly revenue growth stands at roughly 6%, though earnings growth has been flat, influencing cautious analyst adjustments.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
ECL and SHW share sector exposure in specialty chemicals but diverge in business models: ECL focuses on recurring services in hygiene and emerging AI cooling, while SHW relies on cyclical paints demand tied to construction. Growth drivers favor ECL's acquisition-fueled expansion over SHW's volume pressures. Recent momentum tilts to ECL with superior one-year returns, though SHW edges YTD. Risk factors include SHW's higher beta (1.27 vs. 0.98), amplifying market volatility, versus ECL's debt from deals. Market sentiment shows ECL gaining from tech catalysts amid SHW's housing sensitivity.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron's AI models currently lean toward ECL over SHW, citing stronger trend consistency from AI data center catalysts, higher quarterly earnings growth (19% vs. flat), and relative stability in recent market activity. While SHW offers dividend appeal, ECL's positioning suggests higher probability of outperformance in growth-oriented scenarios.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is ECL is a Buy and SHW is a StrongBuy.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
ECL’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileSHW’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s).
- ECL’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- SHW’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
ECL’s TA Score shows that 7 TA indicator(s) are bullish while SHW’s TA Score has 6 bullish TA indicator(s).
- ECL’s TA Score: 7 bullish, 3 bearish.
- SHW’s TA Score: 6 bullish, 3 bearish.
Price Growth
ECL (@Chemicals: Specialty) experienced а +0.56% price change this week, while SHW (@Chemicals: Specialty) price change was -1.04% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Chemicals: Specialty industry was -1.31%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -1.54%, and the average quarterly price growth was +16.77%.
Reported Earning Dates
ECL is expected to report earnings on Jul 28, 2026.
SHW is expected to report earnings on Jul 28, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Chemicals: Specialty (-1.31% weekly)The specialty chemicals sector includes companies that produce chemicals and industrial gases, which are of relatively high-value, often made to customer specifications. Examples of specialty chemicals are electronic chemicals, industrial gases, coatings, adhesives and sealants, industrial and institutional cleaning chemicals. The products are often valued on the basis of their purposes/performances rather than for their composition. Linde Plc, Ecolab Inc., Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., and Dow, Inc. are some of the largest companies making specialty chemicals.
| ECL | SHW | ECL / SHW | |
| Capitalization | 75.6B | 79.6B | 95% |
| EBITDA | 3.91B | 4.56B | 86% |
| Gain YTD | 3.153 | -1.730 | -182% |
| P/E Ratio | 36.45 | 30.44 | 120% |
| Revenue | 16.5B | 23.9B | 69% |
| Total Cash | N/A | 217M | - |
| Total Debt | 9.27B | 13.8B | 67% |
ECL | SHW | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 33 | 22 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 62 Fair valued | 88 Overvalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 62 | 79 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 42 | 18 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 33 | 51 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 51 | 58 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 32 | 50 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
ECL's Valuation (62) in the Chemicals Specialty industry is in the same range as SHW (88) in the Industrial Specialties industry. This means that ECL’s stock grew similarly to SHW’s over the last 12 months.
ECL's Profit vs Risk Rating (62) in the Chemicals Specialty industry is in the same range as SHW (79) in the Industrial Specialties industry. This means that ECL’s stock grew similarly to SHW’s over the last 12 months.
SHW's SMR Rating (18) in the Industrial Specialties industry is in the same range as ECL (42) in the Chemicals Specialty industry. This means that SHW’s stock grew similarly to ECL’s over the last 12 months.
ECL's Price Growth Rating (33) in the Chemicals Specialty industry is in the same range as SHW (51) in the Industrial Specialties industry. This means that ECL’s stock grew similarly to SHW’s over the last 12 months.
ECL's P/E Growth Rating (51) in the Chemicals Specialty industry is in the same range as SHW (58) in the Industrial Specialties industry. This means that ECL’s stock grew similarly to SHW’s over the last 12 months.
| ECL | SHW | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 75% | 2 days ago 59% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 50% | 2 days ago 63% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 50% | 2 days ago 49% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 60% | 2 days ago 64% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 51% | 2 days ago 63% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 47% | 2 days ago 52% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 51% | 8 days ago 57% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 20 days ago 54% | 22 days ago 63% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 45% | 2 days ago 57% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 39% | 2 days ago 48% |
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ECL and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, ECL has been loosely correlated with PPG. These tickers have moved in lockstep 61% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if ECL jumps, then PPG could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To ECL | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECL | 100% | +0.08% | ||
| PPG - ECL | 61% Loosely correlated | +0.57% | ||
| RPM - ECL | 59% Loosely correlated | -0.41% | ||
| SHW - ECL | 57% Loosely correlated | -1.21% | ||
| AVNT - ECL | 51% Loosely correlated | -1.01% | ||
| AXTA - ECL | 49% Loosely correlated | -1.29% | ||
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SHW and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, SHW has been closely correlated with RPM. These tickers have moved in lockstep 75% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if SHW jumps, then RPM could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To SHW | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHW | 100% | -1.21% | ||
| RPM - SHW | 75% Closely correlated | -0.41% | ||
| PPG - SHW | 73% Closely correlated | +0.57% | ||
| AXTA - SHW | 66% Closely correlated | -1.29% | ||
| AVNT - SHW | 64% Loosely correlated | -1.01% | ||
| FUL - SHW | 61% Loosely correlated | -0.85% | ||
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