King Luther Capital Management Corp Lowers Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

King Luther Capital Management Corp decreased its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 908,118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,391 shares during the period. Ecolab makes up approximately 1.1% of King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. King Luther Capital Management Corp owned approximately 0.32% of Ecolab worth $244,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 202.6% in the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 70.6% during the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $255.86 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $72.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $270.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $267.11. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $221.62 and a 52 week high of $286.04.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.55% and a net margin of 12.49%.The business had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.480-7.580 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,354 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.16, for a total value of $383,398.64. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,171,108.84. This represents a 10.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total value of $225,378.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,208,165.28. The trade was a 15.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on ECL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $303.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.14.

Ecolab Company Profile

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.