Avity Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Avity Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 142,085 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,273 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for 2.7% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of Ecolab worth $38,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth about $847,544,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,898,565,000 after buying an additional 527,902 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Ecolab by 195.9% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $183,699,000 after acquiring an additional 444,053 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 115.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $193,753,000 after acquiring an additional 389,981 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at about $97,664,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ECL. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ecolab from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ecolab from $295.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $272.57 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $76.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company’s 50 day moving average is $287.33 and its 200-day moving average is $274.38. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $221.62 and a 12-month high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released 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 net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter 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. Sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued 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 is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.11%.

Ecolab Company 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.