Ecolab vs Sherwin-Williams
Sherwin-Williams reported revenue of $23.6 billion in fiscal 2025, 1.5 times Ecolab's $16.1 billion in fiscal 2025. Ecolab's revenue grew 2.2% in its latest year, and Sherwin-Williams' grew 2.1%. Free cash flow was $1.9 billion at Ecolab and $2.7 billion at Sherwin-Williams.
Side by side
| Ecolab | Sherwin-Williams | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 |
| Revenue | $16.1B | $23.6B |
| Revenue growth | 2.2% | 2.1% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 6.4% | 5.1% |
| Gross margin | 44.5% | 48.9% |
| Operating margin | 17.0% | — |
| Net margin | 12.9% | 10.9% |
| Free cash flow | $1.9B | $2.7B |
| Free cash flow margin | 11.8% | 11.3% |
| Return on capital | 13.8% | 19.9% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 2.0x | 2.4x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $1.5B | $2.4B |
| Change in diluted share count | −0.5% | −1.5% |
| Last close | $288.89 | $335.16 |
| P/E at the last close | 38.8× | 30.9× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | bought $3.9 million, sold $27.1 million | sold $9.7 million |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 of 9 | 6 of 9 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
EcolabSherwin-Williams
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
EcolabSherwin-Williams
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
EcolabSherwin-Williams
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the Ecolab and Sherwin-Williams pages.