Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Analysts

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Nov 6th, 2026

Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-two ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eighteen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $328.58.

ECL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Ecolab from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Ecolab from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 7th.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on ECL

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL stock opened at $306.02 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $85.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.64, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.85. Ecolab has a fifty-two week low of $243.15 and a fifty-two week high of $318.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $283.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $276.79.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The basic materials company reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.18. Ecolab had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 22.57%. The business had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.07 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 254,014 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $69,747,000 after acquiring an additional 23,065 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in Ecolab by 14.7% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 15,355 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,968 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 36.6% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,514 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $965,000 after purchasing an additional 942 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter worth $180,000. Finally, Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 20.4% during the 3rd quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. now owns 354 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ecolab

(Get Free Report)

Ecolab Inc is a global provider of water, hygiene, infection prevention and cleaning solutions for businesses and institutions. The company helps customers manage water and energy use, maintain sanitary operations, protect food supplies and comply with health and safety standards.

Ecolab serves customers across industries including food and beverage processing, hospitality, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, institutional facilities and energy. Its offerings include cleaning and sanitizing chemicals, water-treatment and process-management systems, pest-control services, kitchen and housekeeping products, infection-prevention programs, and related equipment, training and consulting services.

Founded in 1923 as Economics Laboratory, the company has expanded from its original focus on cleaning products into a broad range of technology-enabled services and solutions.