ECL vs. HMY: Ecolab vs. Harmony Gold Mining Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) both fall under the Materials industry group, but ECL is classified in Chemicals while HMY is classified in Metals & Mining.

Ecolab (ECL) trades as ordinary local shares, while Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Company profile comparison for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Profile Item	ECL	HMY
Name	Ecolab Inc.	Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited - Depositary Receipt (Common Stock)
Country/Region	United States	South Africa
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Chemicals	Metals & Mining
GICS Sub-Industry	Specialty Chemicals	Gold
Market Capitalization	84.33 billion USD	10.77 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	February 21, 1973	May 17, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	ADR

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

ECL

HMY

GSPC

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Total Return (1Y)	20.33%	10.98%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	21.41%	60.07%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	6.90%	39.44%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

ECL

HMY

GSPC

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	21.72%	63.56%
Beta (5Y)	0.84	1.08
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-43.70%	-62.48%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.40M	3.68M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

ECL and HMY are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.74	0.11
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.13	0.15

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Ecolab (ECL) at 20.77% and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 48.05% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

ECL

Materials industry group

20.77%

Max: 52.88%
ECL: 20.77%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

HMY

Materials industry group

48.05%

Max: 52.88%
HMY: 48.05%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 29.57% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Ecolab (ECL) at 11.99%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

ECL

Materials industry group

11.99%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
ECL: 11.99%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

HMY

Materials industry group

29.57%

Max: 38.66%
HMY: 29.57%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 47.18% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Ecolab (ECL) at 19.22%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

ECL

Materials industry group

19.22%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
ECL: 19.22%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

HMY

Materials industry group

47.18%

Max: 66.70%
HMY: 47.18%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
ROE (TTM)	20.77%	48.05%
ROA (TTM)	7.29%	25.06%
Net Margin (TTM)	11.99%	29.57%
Operating Margin (TTM)	19.22%	47.18%
Gross Margin (TTM)	44.04%	49.62%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Only one side can be read here: Ecolab (ECL) reports revenue growth of 2.16%, ranked against its industry; Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) has no revenue growth figure this period.

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Ecolab (ECL) reports EPS growth of -1.22%, ranked against its industry; Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Revenue Growth (YoY)	2.16%	--
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.26%	26.28%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-1.22%	--
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	24.09%	81.32%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Ecolab (ECL) at 1.11 and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 0.84 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

ECL

Materials industry group

1.11

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
ECL: 1.11
Min: 0.16

HMY

Materials industry group

0.84

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
HMY: 0.84
Min: 0.16

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 0.13 keeps leverage in the lower quartile, while Ecolab (ECL) at 1.33 sits in the higher-leverage quartile.

ECL

Materials industry group

1.33

Max: 1.98
ECL: 1.33
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

HMY

Materials industry group

0.13

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
HMY: 0.13
Min: 0.00

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.11	0.84
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.33	0.13
Net Debt / EBITDA	3.09	0.02

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Ecolab (ECL) at 0.95% pays an industry-typical yield; Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 75.74% is above its entire peer range — the higher number, but one that calls for a look at payout sustainability before treating it as an advantage.

ECL

Materials industry group

0.95%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
ECL: 0.95%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HMY

Materials industry group

75.74%

HMY: 75.74%
Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Ecolab (ECL) at 39.73% and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 15.28% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

ECL

Materials industry group

39.73%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
ECL: 39.73%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HMY

Materials industry group

15.28%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
HMY: 15.28%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.95%	75.74%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	39.73%	15.28%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 6.27 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Ecolab (ECL) at 40.91 sits in the richer quartile — a clear split in what investors pay for each dollar of trailing earnings.

ECL

Materials industry group

40.91

Max: 59.00
ECL: 40.91
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

HMY

Materials industry group

6.27

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
HMY: 6.27
Min: 3.93

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 0.11 looks cheap on sales in the lower P/S ratio quartile, while Ecolab (ECL) at 4.85 looks rich in the upper quartile — a clear gap in price per dollar of revenue.

ECL

Materials industry group

4.85

Max: 9.62
ECL: 4.85
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

HMY

Materials industry group

0.11

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
HMY: 0.11
Min: 0.00

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) at 2.34 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Ecolab (ECL) at 8.09 prices above its benchmark range — ECL looks rich relative to book.

ECL

Materials industry group

8.09

ECL: 8.09
Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

HMY

Materials industry group

2.34

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
HMY: 2.34
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

Ecolab (ECL) vs. Harmony Gold Mining (HMY): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Ecolab (ECL) and Harmony Gold Mining (HMY)
Metric	ECL	HMY
P/E Ratio (TTM)	40.91	6.27
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.85	0.11
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	8.09	2.34
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.71%	91.49%