Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Bought by Axxcess Wealth Management LLC

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 202.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,812 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Ecolab by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,898,565,000 after buying an additional 527,902 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $1,469,019,000 after acquiring an additional 22,986 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $847,544,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Ecolab by 9.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,497,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $674,497,000 after purchasing an additional 205,634 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,999.50. This trade represents a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This trade represents a 3.37% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $304.07 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.62 and a fifty-two week high of $306.52. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $278.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $86.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.99.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.81 EPS. The company’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 research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Ecolab from $295.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.76.

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.