Analysts Offer Predictions for Ecolab FY2027 Earnings

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) – Erste Group Bank issued their FY2027 EPS estimates for Ecolab in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel anticipates that the basic materials company will earn $9.70 per share for the year. Erste Group Bank has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ecolab’s current full-year earnings is $7.54 per share.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $322.76.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $304.07 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $278.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $86.13 billion, a PE ratio of 41.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.99. Ecolab has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $306.52.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm 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.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,327,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,649,026,000 after purchasing an additional 137,578 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,788,497,000 after buying an additional 4,110,472 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Ecolab by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,883,084 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,069,468,000 after purchasing an additional 441,747 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ecolab by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,472,599,000 after buying an additional 46,569 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $1,022,334,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 $5,933,816. This represents a 3.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

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.