Ecolab said the federal tax law will bring investors about 10 cents more a share this year. The company also said its 2018 forecast is boosted by the changes and it will make a $25 million contribution to its corporate foundation.
"We finished 2017 in a strong fashion, with better than forecasted sales growth and double-digit adjusted earnings per share growth in the fourth quarter," said Chairman and CEO Douglas Baker Jr. in a news release.
After the St. Paul-based company calculated the effects of the new law on deferred tax liabilities and repatriated earnings of foreign subsidiaries, it now expects fourth-quarter 2017 earnings to see a benefit of 45 to 50 cents a share.
In the fourth quarter, the company expects to report adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.38 to $1.40. The forecast is $4.68 to $4.70 for full fiscal-year 2017, a bump of 7 to 8 percent over 2016. The company said the benefits, as well as sales momentum, should result in a 12 to 16 percent increase in adjusted EPS in 2018 to $5.25 to $5.45.
The $25 million contribution to the Ecolab Foundation will add to the more than $100 million the company has donated since 1986 to the nonprofit, which funds needs for hunger relief, affordable housing, education, arts and environmental conservation issues.
Ecolab reports its final 2017 results on Feb. 20.
The company's stock closed Tuesday at $137.76, up nearly 2 percent.
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