Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases 68,062 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 25.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 330,698 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 68,062 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.12% of Ecolab worth $86,670,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,898,565,000 after purchasing an additional 527,902 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Ecolab by 195.9% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $183,699,000 after buying an additional 444,053 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ecolab by 115.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $193,753,000 after acquiring an additional 389,981 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at about $97,664,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 64.5% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $240,676,000 after acquiring an additional 344,541 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.7%

ECL opened at $268.98 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $279.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.69. The company has a market capitalization of $75.96 billion, a PE ratio of 36.95, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.02. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $235.62 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.81 EPS. Ecolab’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.82.

About Ecolab

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.