Ecolab Gains After Beating Q1 Sales Expectations And Raising FY24 Outlook; Divests Surgical Segment For $950M

Ecolab Inc. ECL shares are gaining on Tuesday after the company reported first-quarter results.

The company reported quarterly adjusted earnings per share of $1.34, which is in line with the street view. 

Quarterly sales of $3.752 billion beat the analyst consensus of $3.748 billion.

Sales gained 5% year over year, led by strong growth in the Institutional & Specialty and Pest Elimination segments and modest Industrial segment growth.

The company reported an organic operating income margin of 14.7%, +400 bps, as lower delivered product costs, value-based pricing, and volume growth more than offset growth-oriented investments in the business.

Sale Of Global Surgical Segment: Ecolab said it has entered into a definitive agreement for the sale of its global surgical solutions business to Medline for $950 million in cash.

“We are also pleased to announce the sale of our global surgical solutions business. This transaction builds on the deliberate actions we’ve taken to lay the foundation to transform our global healthcare business into a high-quality Ecolab business,” Christophe Beck, Ecolab’s chairman and chief executive officer, said. 

The sale is expected to close in the second half of 2024, subject to regulatory clearances and other customary closing conditions.

Outlook: Ecolab increases FY24 adjusted EPS from $6.10-$6.50 to $6.40-$6.70 versus the $6.39 estimate.

Ecolab expects the second quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $1.62-$1.72 range versus the $1.54 estimate, rising 31% to 39% compared with adjusted EPS of $1.24 a year ago.

Price Action: ECL shares are trading higher by 3.2% to $228.86 at last check Tuesday.