Dirty rivers and sewage headlines are turning water quality from a background issue into front-page news. With Molendotech pushing AI driven testing and real time data, attention is swinging toward companies that help measure what flows through pipes and waterways. That shift may matter for investors who care where capital goes next. This article walks through three stocks exposed to this story and what their exposure might mean for your portfolio.

The stocks covered below are just a small sample of the opportunity, and the full screen surfaced 12 more companies with equally compelling water quality and environmental testing narratives that are not included in this article. To go deeper into the full list, analyze their fundamentals and identify your own highest conviction ideas, head straight to the Water Quality & Environmental Testing Technologies screener.

Fluence (ASX:FLC)

Fluence focuses on smart water and wastewater treatment solutions for municipal, commercial, and industrial customers, spanning desalination, filtration, disinfection, reuse, and waste to energy systems. Revenue is spread across project types, led by the Ivory Coast Project at about $27 million, Industrial Water & Reuse at around $17 million, Industrial Wastewater & Biogas at roughly $14 million, and Municipal Water & Wastewater at about $12 million, with smaller contributions from Build Own Operate and Southeast Asia and China. The company is currently a small cap, with a market value of roughly A$80 million.

Fluence sits at the intersection of rising concern over dirty water and real time monitoring. Its membrane aerated biofilm reactor and modular plants are already working from village clusters to city scale, and management continues to report growing order books in areas such as North America and Southeast Asia. At the same time, Fluence still relies heavily on large, lumpy projects such as the Ivory Coast contract, carries negative equity, and uses higher risk borrowing, so any execution stumble or delay can have a significant impact. For investors seeking exposure to smarter water treatment that ties in with the kind of AI driven testing push Molendotech represents, this is a business worth watching closely.

Fluence sits at the intersection of AI driven monitoring and real world water problems, yet its story is still framed around one-off projects and balance sheet worries. Get the fuller picture with the 3 key rewards and 1 important major warning sign

Build your own smart water shortlist

Fluence and the other two stocks in this article all surfaced from a single screener, but the real advantage comes when you set up filters that match your own approach. Use our customisable Screener to mix metrics like valuation, balance sheet strength and risks into your own shortlist, or tap into any of our curated Investing Ideas.

Veralto (VLTO)

Veralto is a US$23.8b company that helps keep both water and packaged goods safe and consistent, through its Water Quality segment and its Product Quality & Innovation arm. Most revenue comes from Water Quality at about US$3.5b, with the balance of roughly US$2.2b from Product Quality & Innovation, which covers marking, coding and color management for consumer and industrial products.

Veralto sits squarely in the middle of the water quality story investors are watching after Molendotech’s AI driven testing push, with brands like Hach, Trojan and ChemTreat already working with utilities, data centers and municipalities that care about tighter standards and real time insight. Earnings quality, high margins and growing software and consumables revenue have caught analyst attention, yet the company carries meaningful debt and is spending heavily on acquisitions and R&D, so execution and governance matter. If you are interested in a large, pure play water and product quality business that is aligned with situations where regulators and customers demand better data, Veralto is a stock that may warrant closer research.

Veralto’s mix of recurring software and consumables revenue often masks the real trade off between quality and risk. Step through the 3 key rewards and 1 important warning sign

IDEXX Laboratories (IDXX)

IDEXX Laboratories sits at the crossroads of pet diagnostics and water safety, supplying vets, farmers, and utilities with instruments, tests, and software. Most revenue comes from the Companion Animal Group at about US$4.2b, with smaller contributions from Water at roughly US$214 million, Livestock, Poultry and Dairy at around US$139 million, and Other at about US$17 million. The company is large, with a market value of roughly US$43.4b.

Investors screening for water quality and environmental testing exposure may consider IDEXX Laboratories as a potential candidate for further research. A high margin, recurring revenue engine in pet diagnostics sits alongside a water testing business that fits neatly with rising interest in real time monitoring highlighted by Molendotech’s AI driven mapping app. Analysts describe growth and quality as strong enough to support a premium P/E, yet that valuation, reliance on debt and softer vet visit trends all mean the stock carries risk. The key consideration is whether the combination of expanding diagnostic menus, cloud software and a sticky customer base justifies paying a premium valuation for IDEXX Laboratories at today’s levels.

Growth in IDEXX Laboratories’ pet diagnostics and sticky software can easily distract from what really matters for long term value. Walk through the analyst forecasts for IDEXX Laboratories and see what the current P/E might be hinting at next.

Seeking Alternatives Beyond Water Quality?

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.