Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL – Free Report) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 7,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,019,000.
A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Alta Advisers Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $287,000. Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Ecolab during the second quarter worth approximately $3,545,000. Commerce Bank acquired a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $8,661,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,109,000. Finally, Evolve Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $419,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Monday, August 17th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.
Ecolab Stock Up 0.1%
Shares of ECL stock opened at $281.91 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $276.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.66. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27. The stock has a market cap of $79.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.88.
Ecolab (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.
Ecolab Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total transaction of $5,003,860.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at $20,431,170.48. This trade represents a 19.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This represents a 23.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 28,866 shares of company stock worth $7,878,801 in the last 90 days. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
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.
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