ACN vs BAH vs ECL Stock Comparison

Accenture, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding and Ecolab Prices as of Nov 5, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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ACN Accenture plc
$265.25 +37.1% 1M +7.0% 1Y
Market cap
$159.50B
P/E
19.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$74.18B
Div. yield
0.02%
Consulting Industrials
5 wins
ECL Ecolab Inc.
$305.85 +8.9% 1M +18.1% 1Y
Market cap
$84.34B
P/E
40.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$17.37B
Div. yield
0.01%
Water Treatment Industrials
5 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Accenture leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Accenture 5, Ecolab 5, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionACNBAHECLLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $159.50B $10.16B $84.34B ACN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.1x 13.0x 40.5x BAH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 17.2x 13.2x 38.7x BAH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.5% -6.2% +9.3% ECL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.3% 7.1% 12.0% ECL
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 21.1% 17.1% 10.0% ACN
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.2x 3.4x 3.1x ACN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.02% 0.00% 0.01% ACN
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +7.0% +3.1% +18.1% ECL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -6.4%/yr +0.6%/yr +5.8%/yr ECL
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 50.6% 41.9% 21.8% ECL
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 64/100 63/100 62/100 ACN

Percentile Scorecard

ACNBAHECL

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisACNBAHECL
Valuation 47 #61 of 114 68 #37 of 114 58 #9 of 20
Growth 55 #45 of 98 62 #38 of 98 82 #4 of 18
Profitability 89 #11 of 95 87 #13 of 95 88 #3 of 17
Financial Health 77 #30 of 126 32 #86 of 126 20 #17 of 21
Shareholder Returns 53 #34 of 71 67 #24 of 71 64 #5 of 12
Overall 64 63 62
  • ACN ranked among 131 companies in Business Services
  • BAH ranked among 131 companies in Business Services
  • ECL ranked among 21 companies in Environmental Equipment

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodACNBAHECLSPY
1 month +37.1%+31.1%+8.9% -5.9%
3 months +55.0%+20.9%+7.8% -4.6%
6 months +47.2%+16.2%+19.2% +0.2%
Year to date -1.1%+5.9%+16.5% +7.5%
1 year +7.0%+3.1%+18.1% +8.2%
3 years -15.3%-27.7%+75.3% +68.3%
3 years, per year -5.4%-10.3%+20.6% +19.0%
5 years -28.0%+2.9%+32.6% +56.5%
5 years, per year -6.4%+0.6%+5.8% +9.4%
10 years +126.3%+183.4%+176.4% +251.5%
10 years, per year +8.5%+11.0%+10.7% +13.4%

Risk

MeasureACNBAHECLSPY
Volatility, 1Y 50.6%41.9%21.8% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 52.0%42.2%21.0% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.020.110.51 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.140.080.83 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -70.0%-67.9%-44.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -8.1%-12.6%-2.9% -5.9%
52-week high $288.54$102.23$315.10 $779.14
52-week low $124.44$59.71$245.73 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleACNBAHECL
P/E now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 21.1x 13.6xmedian 21.1x 41.2xmedian 36.2x
P/S now vs peer median 2.4xmedian 0.9x 1.0xmedian 0.9x 4.9xmedian 2.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.7xmedian 11.7x 12.3xmedian 11.7x 24.7xmedian 22.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 15.3xmedian 15.3x 10.8xmedian 15.3x 47.8xmedian 25.4x
P/B now vs peer median 5.4xmedian 2.3x 8.6xmedian 2.3x 8.2xmedian 1.8x
PEG now vs peer median 2.43median 0.88 0.32median 0.88 2.08median 2.08

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsACNBAHECL
Revenue $74.18B $10.98B $17.37B
Gross profit $23.78B $5.77B $7.63B
Operating income $11.41B $1.02B $2.90B
Net income $8.37B $784.00M $2.10B
Free cash flow $11.62B $984.00M $1.80B
EPS (diluted) $13.55 $6.56 $7.38
Cash & equivalents $12.83B $334.00M $722.30M
Total debt $10.11B $4.41B $13.19B
Shares (diluted) 617.50M 119.59M 282.10M
Enterprise value $117.43B $7.68B $77.32B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricACNBAHECL
P/E 19.4x 13.6x 41.2x
P/FCF 15.3x 10.8x 47.8x
P/Operating cash flow 14.3x 9.9x 28.3x
P/S 2.4x 1.0x 4.9x
P/B 5.4x 8.6x 8.2x
P/Tangible book 5.9x 27.3x 16.0x
EV/EBITDA 12.7x 12.3x 24.7x
EV/EBIT 15.3x 14.5x 33.9x
EV/Revenue 2.4x 1.3x 5.7x
EV/FCF 15.0x 15.0x 54.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.1x 13.7x 32.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.43 0.32 2.08

Growth

14 metrics
MetricACNBAHECL
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.5% -6.2% 9.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.0% 3.1% 4.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 6.9% -7.8% 8.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 4.7% 2.4% 8.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) 11.5% -8.0% 11.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 25.3% 17.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.0% -5.1% 4.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 6.8% 38.5% 18.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 11.6% -2.5% 6.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 8.0% 42.9% 19.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 7.7% 18.2% 15.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.1% 61.2% 7.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 6.9% 20.1% 15.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.9% 75.1% 1.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricACNBAHECL
Gross margin 32.0% 52.5% 43.9%
EBITDA margin 18.6% 10.9% 22.9%
Operating margin 15.4% 9.3% 16.7%
Pretax margin 15.3% 7.9% 15.0%
Net margin 11.3% 7.1% 12.0%
FCF margin 15.7% 9.0% 10.3%
Operating cash flow margin 16.7% 9.8% 17.4%
Return on equity 25.9% 64.1% 20.4%
Return on assets 12.0% 9.9% 6.9%
Return on invested capital 21.1% 17.1% 10.0%
Return on capital employed 23.3% 17.1% 12.0%
Asset turnover 1.0x 1.4x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x 1.4x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 2.8% 0.7% 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricACNBAHECL
Debt / assets 13.7% 53.1% 42.4%
Debt / equity 0.3x 3.5x 1.3x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.2x 3.4x 3.1x
Debt / FCF 0.9x 4.5x 7.3x
Liabilities / assets 55.5% 85.0% 66.4%
Equity / assets 44.5% 15.0% 33.6%
Interest coverage 37.6x – 8.0x
Current ratio 1.4x 1.4x 1.1x
Quick ratio 1.4x 2.2x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.6x 0.2x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 4.75 3.41 4.00

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricACNBAHECL
Dividend yield 2.5% 2.6% 1.0%
Net buyback yield 3.5% 3.1% 1.1%
Shareholder yield 6.0% 5.7% 2.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) 47.7% – 39.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) 34.3% – 45.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) 7.8% – 12.7%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 12.1% – 9.7%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusACNBAHECL
Forward P/E 17.2xFY2027 13.2xFY2026 38.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $15.40FY2027 $6.79FY2026 $7.91FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +10.2%FY2027 +4.3%FY2026 +5.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -2.2% -4.0% +23.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $72.38BFY2027 $11.70BFY2026 $17.28BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -2.4%FY2027 +4.3%FY2026 +7.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +18.1% +4.1% +5.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersACNBAHECL
Held by institutions 72.9% 96.5% 80.0%
Institutions holding 1,901 559 1,715
Change in shares held, QoQ -1.6% +1.0% +1.4%
Institutions buying 957 285 764
Institutions selling 779 202 680
Buyers to sellers 1.23 1.41 1.12

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ACNBAHECL
ACN 1.00 0.54 0.12
BAH 0.54 1.00 0.07
ECL 0.12 0.07 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ACN, BAH and ECL?

Accenture (ACN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Accenture (ACN) $159.50B, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) $10.16B, Ecolab (ECL) $84.34B.

Which stock is cheaper, ACN, BAH and ECL?

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Accenture (ACN) 19.1x, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 13.0x, Ecolab (ECL) 40.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) is cheapest (Accenture (ACN) 17.2x, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 13.2x, Ecolab (ECL) 38.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Ecolab (ECL) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Accenture (ACN) +6.5%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) -6.2%, Ecolab (ECL) +9.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ecolab (ECL) has the highest net margin (Accenture (ACN) 11.3%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 7.1%, Ecolab (ECL) 12.0%). On return on invested capital, Accenture (ACN) leads (Accenture (ACN) 21.1%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 17.1%, Ecolab (ECL) 10.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ecolab (ECL) returned the most: Accenture (ACN) +7.0%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) +3.1%, Ecolab (ECL) +18.1%. Over five years, Ecolab (ECL) compounded fastest (Accenture (ACN) -6.4%/yr, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) +0.6%/yr, Ecolab (ECL) +5.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Accenture (ACN) has the highest dividend yield: Accenture (ACN) 0.02%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 0.00%, Ecolab (ECL) 0.01%. Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ecolab (ECL) has been the steadiest (Accenture (ACN) 50.6%, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (BAH) 41.9%, Ecolab (ECL) 21.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ACN, BAH and ECL?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Accenture (ACN) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.