Ecolab forecasts second-quarter profit below estimates as Iran war pushes up costs

Ecolab

28/04/2026 14:59

April 28 (Reuters) - Water-treatment and sanitation services provider Ecolab ECL.N on Tuesday forecast second-quarter profit below Wall Street estimates, as surging commodity prices amid global supply-chain disruptions are expected to drive up costs.

The war in Iran has disrupted supplies across the world, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz pushing up costs for transportation and logistics. Meanwhile, oil prices have surged more than 82% so far this year.

"Commodity costs are expected to increase high-single digits starting in the second quarter, and we expect those costs to remain high through the end of the year," CEO Christophe Beck said.

The Saint Paul, Minnesota-based company had imposed a 10%-14% global energy surcharge on products and services from April as higher oil and gas prices raised raw material, manufacturing and logistics expenses.

Ecolab's logistics exposure appeared to be tied to higher freight and distribution costs for its products and equipment.

"Exiting the second quarter, we expect accelerating pricing to cover the dollar impact from higher commodity costs, with gross margin stabilizing in the second-half of the year," Beck added.

The company expects second-quarter adjusted profit to be in the range of $2.02 per share to $2.12 per share, the midpoint of which is below analysts' average estimate of $2.11 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Shares of the company were down 1.7% at $263.21 in early trading.

In March, Ecolab agreed to buy CoolIT Systems from KKR for about $4.75 billion in cash, to capitalize on growing demand for liquid cooling in AI data centers.

For the three months ended March 31, Ecolab's net sales rose 10% to $4.07 billion, driven by strength in its largest global water segment.

The company also posted adjusted profit of $1.70 per share for the three months ended March 31, in line with analysts' average estimate.

 (Reporting by Khusbu Jena in Bengaluru; Editing by Diti Pujara)

 ((Khusbu.Jena@thomsonreuters.com;))