Back to top

Image: Bigstock

ECL Boosts High-Tech Water Platform With Ovivo's Electronics Business

Read MoreHide Full Article

Key Takeaways

  • ECL closed the Ovivo Electronics deal, expanding its high-tech water platform.
  • ECL adds Ovivo's ultrapure water expertise to enhance circular water solutions for chip manufacturing.
  • The acquisition is set to more than double ECL's high-tech water business with strong long-term growth.

Ecolab (ECL - Free Report) recently closed its previously announced acquisition of Ovivo’s Electronics business, a fast-growing global provider of ultrapure water technologies used in semiconductor manufacturing. The deal meaningfully expands Ecolab’s presence in the high-tech water solutions space, positioning it to serve customers across the semiconductor value chain as demand accelerates from AI, advanced computing and data center investments.

By combining Ovivo Electronics’ ultrapure water expertise with Ecolab’s global water, digital and service capabilities, the company strengthens its water circularity offering in one of the most water-intensive industries.

Likely Trend of ECL Stock Following the News

Following the announcement, the company's shares traded flat in yesterday’s after-market trading. In the six-month period, shares have gained 0.6% against the industry’s 2.8% decline. The S&P 500 has gained 16.2% in the same time frame.

Over the long term, the Ovivo Electronics acquisition should strengthen Ecolab’s growth and margin profile by deepening its presence in the fast-growing semiconductor and AI ecosystem. Ultrapure water is mission-critical for chip manufacturing and combining Ovivo’s technologies with ECL’s global water, digital and service platform enables more comprehensive, end-to-end solutions, higher customer retention and recurring service revenues.

ECL currently has a market capitalization of $73.51 billion. In the last reported quarter, ECL delivered an earnings surprise of 0.49%.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

More on the Acquisition News

In August, Ecolab entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Ovivo’s Electronics business. Ovivo Electronics is expected to generate around $500 million in sales in 2025 and employs more than 900 people worldwide. ECL acquired the business for approximately $1.8 billion in cash, subject to customary adjustments. Strategically, the deal brings together Ovivo’s ultra-pure water capabilities with ECL’s established water solutions, digital technologies and global service network, enabling it to offer end-to-end circular water management solutions for microelectronics customers while helping reduce fresh water consumption and improve chip yield and quality.

Management highlighted that ultra-pure water is essential for advanced chip manufacturing, with a single semiconductor fab capable of consuming the annual drinking water needs of about 17 million people, underscoring the importance of sustainable water solutions. The acquisition is expected to more than double ECL’s global high-tech water growth engine, positioning the combined $800 million high-tech business for strong double-digit growth and attractive operating margins. Financially, the transaction is anticipated to be immediately accretive to sales growth, neutral to adjusted EPS in the first-year post-close, excluding roughly $45 million in non-cash amortization, and increasingly accretive through 2027 and beyond.

Favorable Industry Prospects for ECL

Per a report by Future Market Insights, the ultrapure water market is estimated to be valued at $10.9 billion in 2025 and projected to reach $31.1 billion by 2035, registering a CAGR of 11.1% over the forecast period.

The ultrapure water market is expanding steadily, owing to rising demand from industries where water purity is critical for operations such as semiconductor manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and power generation.

Other Recent Developments for ECL

In November, ECL expanded its data-center-focused portfolio with the launch of a fully integrated Cooling as a Service program designed to elevate cooling performance from site to chip. Arriving at a time when AI-driven workloads are rapidly intensifying demand on global data center infrastructure, the new offering combines Ecolab’s 3D TRASAR technology, smart Coolant Distribution Units and a century of cooling management expertise.

ECL’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Currently, ECL carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Medpace Holdings (MEDP - Free Report) , Intuitive Surgical (ISRG - Free Report) and Boston Scientific (BSX - Free Report) .

Medpace, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), reported a third-quarter 2025 EPS of $3.86, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 10.29%. Revenues of $659.9 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.04%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

MEDP has an estimated earnings growth rate of 17.1% for 2025 compared with the industry’s 16.6% growth. The company’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 14.28%.

Intuitive Surgicalsporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, posted a third-quarter 2025 adjusted EPS of $2.40, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 20.6%. Revenues of $2.51 billion topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.9%.

ISRG has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 15.7% compared with the industry’s 11.9% growth. The company’s earnings outpaced estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 16.34%.

Boston Scientific, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2, reported a third-quarter 2025 adjusted EPS of 75 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.6%. Revenues of $5.07 billion outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.9%.

BSX has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 16.4% compared with the industry’s 13.5% growth. The company’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 7.36%.

Published in