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STOCK COMPARISON

Ecolab vs Sherwin-Williams: Fair Value & Quality

Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how Ecolab (ECL) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) compare, as of Sep 4, 2026.

As of Sep 4, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Sherwin-Williams as the less overvalued of the two: Ecolab trades at $279 versus a fair value of $96.18 (-66%), while Sherwin-Williams trades at $332 versus $143 (-57%).
Ecolab
ECL · USD · Materials
-66%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$279
Fair Value$96.18
Quality62/100
Sherwin-Williams
SHW · USD · Materials
-57%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$332
Fair Value$143
Quality64/100
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Head-to-head numbers

Green value = the better side for that row (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper).

EcolabSherwin-Williams
Valuation
37.2×P/E (TTM)31.8×
4.69×P/S (TTM)3.44×
7.90×P/B17.91×
20.8×EV/EBITDA20.1×
2.55×PEG2.55×
−65.5%Fair value upside−56.8%
1.0%Dividend yield1.0%
$2.76Dividend per share$3.17
Profitability
17%Operating margin14%
1.25×EBIT margin trend (5Y)1.04×
22%Return on equity61%
8%Return on assets9%
Growth
10%Revenue growth (YoY)7%
4.3%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)2.1%
6.4%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)5.1%
+9.8%Value creation/yr+8.5%
Balance & size
12.1×Interest coverage (EBIT/interest)8.1×
0.75×Debt / equity2.03×
$77BMarket cap$82B
healthyGrowth qualityhealthy

Ecolab leads: 8 to 5 metric wins.

Dash = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.

Quality in detail

The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.

Ecolabof which business quality 59 · market factors 55 Sherwin-Williamsof which business quality 60 · market factors 48
ProfitabilityMargins and returns on capital today
57
72
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns improving?
34
35
CashflowEarnings quality: real cash, not paper profit
58
59
Fin. StrengthBalance sheet, leverage, solvency risk
56
35
InvestmentDisciplined investing over empire-building
66
66
Low VolatilityCalm price path (market factor)
77
63
MomentumPrice trend over the last 3–12 months (market factor)
46
45
52W MomentumDistance to the 52-week high (market factor)
47
37
Net IssuanceBuybacks instead of dilution
85
100

What the models say

How far the median fair value (base case) per model family sits from the current price, in percent. The amount in the currency of the trading venue is shown underneath.

above the price, more than 15% above close to the price, 85% to 115% of the price below the price, more than 15% below

Model familyEcolabPrice $279Sherwin-WilliamsPrice $332
DCF Models-63%below the price$103-57%below the price$142
Earnings-Based-77%below the price$65.02-76%below the price$81.13
Dividend Discount-83%below the price$46.86n/a
Multiples-63%below the price$104-57%below the price$144
Asset-Based-92%below the price$23.26-96%below the price$12.49
Growth DCF-68%below the price$88.52-60%below the price$134
Economic Profit-72%below the price$76.77-58%below the price$140
Growth Earnings-58%below the price$118-53%below the price$158
Minimum-92%below the price$23.26-96%below the price$12.49
Maximum-58%below the price$118-53%below the price$158
Median-70%below the price$82.64-58%below the price$140
Geometric mean-75%below the price$70.51-72%below the price$93.28

Minimum, maximum, median and geometric mean refer to the family values in this table. Geometric because deviations are ratios: half the price and twice the price average to 100%, not 125%.

Ecolab: 26 of 26 models see the stock below the current price.

Sherwin-Williams: 24 of 24 models see the stock below the current price.

Scenario ranges

From our cautious bear case to the optimistic bull case. The white tick is the current price: left of fair value means room to run.

Ecolab
Bear $56.66Fair Value $96.18Bull $128
$279 = current price (white tick)
Sherwin-Williams
Bear $89.87Fair Value $143Bull $205
$332 = current price (white tick)

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Ranked within their sector

Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.

Ecolab · Materials

Quality score62 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-66% · bottom 25%

Sherwin-Williams · Materials

Quality score64 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-57% · below median

Bottom line

As of Sep 4, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Sherwin-Williams as the less overvalued of the two: Ecolab trades at $279 versus a fair value of $96.18 (-66%), while Sherwin-Williams trades at $332 versus $143 (-57%).

Sherwin-Williams has the higher quality score (64/100).

See the full analysis →

More comparisons

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A model-based valuation snapshot from 26 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.