Public Sector Pension Investment Board Boosts Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 17.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,127 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,301 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $6,060,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 93.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank lowered Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 price target on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.76.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE:ECL opened at $302.61 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $276.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $272.47. The company has a market cap of $85.71 billion, a PE ratio of 41.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.99. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $221.62 and a twelve month high of $306.52. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.11%.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

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

Ecolab 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.