Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Acquired by ABN Amro Investment Solutions

ABN Amro Investment Solutions boosted its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 19.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 83,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,840 shares during the quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions’ holdings in Ecolab were worth $22,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,662,213 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,644,987,000 after purchasing an additional 250,980 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,479,529 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,469,019,000 after acquiring an additional 22,986 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth $847,544,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its stake in Ecolab by 3.6% during the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,610,791 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $703,452,000 after purchasing an additional 90,005 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 9.0% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,497,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $674,497,000 after purchasing an additional 205,634 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total transaction of $381,451.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,726 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,999.50. This represents a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $257.60 per share, with a total value of $193,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at $5,933,816. The trade was a 3.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL opened at $298.90 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $306.52. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $274.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.63. The company has a market capitalization of $84.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business 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. Equities analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 16th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ECL shares. Barclays raised their price target on Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. 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. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 price objective on Ecolab and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.06.

Ecolab News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Ecolab this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results: Ecolab posted a slight EPS beat and provided FY‑2026 guidance (8.43–8.63 EPS), which supports forward earnings visibility. Q4 2025 earnings call transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades: BNP Paribas Exane moved ECL to a “strong‑buy” (and earlier reaffirmed an outperform with a higher price target), adding buy‑side momentum around the name. Zacks – BNP Paribas upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Additional broker support: Evercore ISI issued a buy rating, and other analysts have raised targets (analyst commentary suggests fair values in the low‑to‑mid $300s), reinforcing upside narratives. Evercore ISI buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst fair‑value discussion: Coverage noted an average analyst view around US$317 post‑results, which frames where market participants expect ECL to trade over the medium term. Yahoo Finance – $317 analyst view
• Neutral Sentiment: Style/quant coverage: Zacks highlighted Ecolab as a top‑ranked growth/style pick, which may attract style‑focused funds but has limited immediate price impact. Zacks – Top‑ranked growth stock
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns on organic growth: Some analysts/commentary argue Ecolab’s organic growth wasn’t strong enough to fully justify upgrades, raising questions about the sustainability of the recent run. Seeking Alpha – organic growth critique

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.