Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $323.5625.

ECL has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $257.60 per share, with a total value of $193,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This trade represents a 3.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 164.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $867,000 after acquiring an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 39.8% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its position in Ecolab by 22.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 1,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $456,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ingalls & Snyder LLC raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 7,848 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,115,000 after buying an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.4%

ECL opened at $305.39 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $279.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.27. The company has a market capitalization of $86.50 billion, a PE ratio of 41.95, a PEG 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. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.81 EPS. Ecolab’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 analysts forecast that Ecolab 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 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.