This Water Stock Is Ready to Become an AI Leader, Bank of America Says

Artificial intelligence is usually discussed in chips, models and data centers. Bank of America says one unusual beneficiary may be a company best known for water treatment and industrial cleaning. Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) has spent decades selling water treatment, cleaning chemicals and pest control to restaurants, hotels and factories. Bank of America thinks that is starting to change. In a note released Thursday, analyst Matthew DeYoe said the company sits at an important inflection, as AI data centers and chip factories could reshape its growth. “Ecolab is the right compounder for this cycle,” DeYoe said. He reiterated a Buy rating and a $342 price target. That implies about 24% upside from the current $274. Ecolab’s Water Business Is Turning Into an AI Business Water still accounts for roughly half of Ecolab’s revenue. But its High-Tech water business should exceed $1.5 billion in annual sales following the two acquisitions. By 2030, management expects that business to reach $4 billion, up from about $1.5 billion by the end of 2026. The shift comes from two acquisitions. In August 2025, Ecolab bought the ultra-pure water business of Ovivo for $1.8 billion. The unit purifies water for semiconductor plants, where purity standards can be 1,000 times stricter than in drug manufacturing. It adds about $500 million in chip-related revenue. In July 2026, Ecolab closed the $4.75 billion purchase of CoolIT Systems. CoolIT makes liquid cooling equipment for AI servers. As chips become more powerful, air alone can no longer remove the heat. Instead, coolant is pumped through metal plates placed directly on the processors. According to DeYoe, CoolIT enters 2027 with more than $500 million in annual revenue, growing over 100% a year. He said the business could pass a $700 million run rate in 2027, above what management implies. The two deals could add more than 2 percentage points to Ecolab’s yearly volume growth, the analyst said. The Recurring Revenue Opportunity The more interesting part may come after the equipment is installed. Ecolab plans to combine CoolIT hardware with its 3D TRASAR monitoring platform. Customers could continuously monitor coolant quality, cooling performance, energy efficiency and system uptime. In other words, a one-time cooling installation could become a recurring service relationship. That plays directly into Ecolab’s existing model. More than 50,000 industrial water systems already use 3D TRASAR, collectively saving over 215 billion gallons annually. BofA sees that installed base, combined with Ecolab’s on-site service network, as an advantage competitors may struggle to replicate. DeYoe said, "We believe CoolIT’s growth profile could become a meaningful contributor to consolidated results over the next several years." The bank expects companywide volume growth above 5% through 2030, more than 7% revenue growth and mid-teens earnings growth. BofA maintains a Buy rating and a $342 price objective. Against the report’s $276.72 reference price, that represents about 24% upside. The investment question is no longer whether Ecolab is simply a water company. It is whether water, cooling and recurring services can turn it into one of AI infrastructure’s least obvious leaders. Read Also: Citrini’s New Short List: 90 Subscription Stocks at Risk From The ‘Agentic Cancellation Wave’ Image: Shutterstock