Ecolab Inc ( ECL ) shares are trading lower after the company reported second-quarter FY24 sales growth of 3% year-on-year to $3.985 billion, missing the analyst consensus estimate of $4.028 billion.

Global Industrial sales grew 3% to $1.956 billion, Global Institutional & Specialty climbed 8% to $1.372 billion, Global Healthcare & Life Sciences remained flat at $395 million and Global Pet Elimination increased 10% to $297.1 million.

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 6% to $1.1 billion.

Operating income for the quarter increased 36% to $656.9 million, with an operating margin of 16.5%.

Adjusted EPS of $1.68 beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.67.

Ecolab ( ECL ) repurchased approximately 1.4 million shares of its common stock during the second quarter of 2024.

The company held $384 million in cash and equivalents as of June-end.

Outlook: Ecolab ( ECL ) revised FY24 adjusted EPS outlook from $6.40 – $6.70 to $6.50 – $6.70 against the consensus of $6.57.

Ecolab ( ECL ) sees third-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.75 – $1.85 versus an estimate of $1.79.

Price Action: ECL shares are trading lower by 5.96% at $233.15 at last check Tuesday.