Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lowered its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 591,670 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 22,350 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $155,325,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 64.5% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $240,676,000 after acquiring an additional 344,541 shares during the last quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 25.8% in the 3rd quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 72,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $19,773,000 after acquiring an additional 14,800 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $18,254,000 after acquiring an additional 11,322 shares during the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 83,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $22,834,000 after acquiring an additional 13,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 162.4% in the 3rd quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 5,364 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 3,320 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ECL shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 price target (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $312.00 to $293.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.38.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $273.59 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $282.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $273.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $77.27 billion, a PE ratio of 37.58, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.02. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $228.73 and a 1 year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 40.11%.

Ecolab Company Profile

Ecolab, Inc is a global provider of water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services. The company develops and supplies cleaning and sanitizing chemicals, dispensing equipment, water-treatment systems, pest elimination services and related technologies designed to help businesses maintain clean, safe and efficient operations. Its offerings span both products and onsite services, often paired with technical support and training.

Ecolab serves a broad range of end markets including hospitality and foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, manufacturing and industrial operations, and energy and utilities.