Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Andra AP fonden

Andra AP fonden trimmed its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,845 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,155 shares during the quarter. Andra AP fonden’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $26,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wexford Capital LP bought a new position in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the sale, the director owned 11,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 10,550 shares of company stock worth $2,719,508. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.06.

Ecolab Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $268.02 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $75.43 billion, a PE ratio of 36.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $265.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.11. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.15 and a fifty-two week high of $309.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The company had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.51%.

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.