Oppenheimer Reiterates Outperform on Ecolab

Oppenheimer published its company update today on Ecolab ECL reiterating its Outperform rating. In a note to clients, Oppenheimer writes, "ECL grew EPS during the recession, saw organic revenue growth of 3% in 3Q10, and sees gradual sales acceleration to normal higher levels in 2H11. Restaurants should improve and the APEX warewashing rollout will be greatly expanded. Pest Elimination is also picking back up with an "improving trend going forward." Circle-the-customer remains only one-third penetrated." ECL is trading at 19.6x 2011 EPS, a 22% discount to its 10-year average. ECL closed Thursday at $48.89.