Quality Investor

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation

Rank #238Hypergrowth

ZWS · NYSE · Industrials

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation (ZWS) — Rank #238 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.28) · ROE 12.3% · Piotroski F-Score 8 / 9.

As-of 2026-09-15 · CIK 0001439288 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.

About

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation engages in design, procurement, manufacture, and marketing of water management solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally.

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It offers water dispensing and filtration products, such as filtered bottle filling stations, water fountains and water dispensers, and filtered faucets under the Elkay and Halsey Taylor brand names; filtered units including water filters; and water safety and control products, such as backflow preventers, fire system valves, pressure reducing valves, and thermostatic mixing valves under the Zurn and Wilkins brand names. The company also provides flow systems products comprising point drains, hydrants, fixture carrier systems, and chemical drainage systems; and oil and grease interceptors and separators, acid neutralization systems, and remote monitoring systems under the Zurn, Green Turtle, and Wade brands. In addition, it offers sensor operated flush valves under the Aquaflush, AquaSense, and AquaVantage brands; heavy-duty commercial faucets under the AquaSpec brand; flush valves and faucets under the Hydro X Power brands; water conserving fixtures under the EcoVantage and Zurn One brands; stainless steel, quartz, fireclay-ceramic, and cast iron sinks under the Elkay brand name; stainless steel sinks and plumbing fixtures under the Just brand; restroom partition systems and lockers under the Hadrian brand name; and hand dryers. Further, the company offers its products to institutional, commercial, waterworks, and residential end markets through independent sales representatives, plumbing wholesalers, and industry-specific distributors in the waterworks, foodservice, industrial, janitorial, sanitation, and sitework industries. The company was formerly known as Zurn Water Solutions Corporation and changed its name to Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation in July 2022.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation was founded in 1900 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Industry
Pollution & Treatment Controls
Sector
Industrials
State
DE
Filer Category
Large accelerated filer
Fiscal Year End
December 31

Price History

ZWS+58.6% · +9.7% CAGRSPY+80.5% · +12.5% CAGR

Company Snapshot

P/S is the primary valuation lens — earnings are reinvested, not available for P/E.

Market Cap

$7.58B

P/E (annual)

39.7

P/S (annual)

4.5

P/B

4.7

P/OCF (annual)

21.9

Shareholder Yield

-10.5%

Employees

2,600

Industry

Pollution & Treatment Controls

Exchange

NYSE

Signal Flags

2 green2 yellow
Operating leverage expandingOperating income growing faster than revenue
Sequential beat (rev + EPS)Both revenue and EPS exceeded prior quarter — 1-quarter streak
Dilution above 2%Annual share count increase exceeds 2%. May be acceptable for high-growth companies funding talent via stock compensation
Disclosure regressionA previously-disclosed line item is no longer reported — worth checking the filing for why

Quality Profile

Profitability

1/1 pass
GP / assets
0.28
Return on equity
12.3%
Gross margin trend
PASS

Safety

1/1 pass
Balance-sheet safety
PASS
Debt / equity
0.67
Current ratio
3.24×
Net cash
-$225.50M

Cash Flow

1/1 pass
Positive FCF
N/A
Cash-backed earnings
N/A
Accruals healthy
PASS
SBC / revenue
2.4%

Growth

1/2 pass
Revenue growth
32.3%
Piotroski F-Score
8 / 9
Share dilution
11.3%

Terry Smith quality gate

Passes 0/5 Terry Smith thresholds

2 of 5 thresholds not computable from filed data.

Valuation History

Current multiple vs historical range at each filing date. Band spans 25th-75th percentile.

P / E

Price / diluted EPS

49.8xExpensive
8.5xmed 30.4x59.7x

P / S

Price / revenue per share

3.7xExpensive
0.5xmed 0.8x4.4x

P / B

Price / book value per share

3.5xExpensive
1.1xmed 1.7x31.4x

P / GP

Price / gross profit per share

8.7xExpensive
1.5xmed 2.0x10.6x

P / FCF

Price / free cash flow per share

N/A
5.9xmed 7.7x8.2x

Revenue growth and the path to profitability (margin trend) are the primary reads at this stage.

Profitability

Gross profitability (GP / assets)

0.28

Primary signal (Novy-Marx).

63rd pctl of 36 SIC 35 peers

Return on equity

12.3%

Gross margin

45.1%

66th pctl of 36 SIC 35 peers

Revenue growth (YoY)

32.3%

Gross margin improving

Margin trend vs prior year.

PASS

Operating Leverage

2020202120222023
Revenue vs COGS
Revenue vs OpEx
Op. Income vs Revenue

Growth

Revenue CAGR (3Y)

Revenue CAGR (5Y)

Earnings CAGR (3Y)

47.5%

FCF CAGR (3Y)

Anti-fragile safety

Balance-sheet safety

Composite anti-fragile check.

PASS

Debt / equity

0.67

77th pctl of 36 SIC 35 peers (best = lowest)

Current ratio

3.24×

91st pctl of 36 SIC 35 peers

Quick ratio

2.00×

Net cash

-$225.50M

Cash & equivalents minus total debt.

Recession resistance

Revenue through recessions

Worst single-year YoY revenue decline, 15 years of history

Strong
2008-2009 (GFC)
N/AN/A
2020 (COVID)
191.3%Grew through it
Worst year on record(any fiscal year, not recession-limited)
-65.4%Significant decline

Cash-flow health

Free cash flow

Operating cash flow minus capex.

Positive free cash flow

N/A

FCF / net income

Cash-backing of earnings.

FCF/NI divergence

Unfavorable divergence (yellow flag).

N/A

Accruals healthy

Cash-backed earnings.

PASS

SBC / revenue

2.4%

Stock-based comp intensity.

Dividend safety

Composite score

2.0 / 5

Fair
Payout ratio
32.3%4/5 Strong
FCF coverage
N/A0/5 Weak
Dividend growth streak
3 yr2/5 Fair
Balance-sheet health
D/E 0.67 · IC N/A2/5 Fair

Piotroski F-Score

F-Score

8 / 9

Fundamental-strength score (0-9).

Lifecycle Phase History

20192023
Hypergrowth
Value
Capital Return