Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. reduced its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 17.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 54,325 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 11,132 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $14,637,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 202.6% during the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $253.09 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.68 billion, a PE ratio of 36.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.98. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $286.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $267.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $269.06.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.49% and a return on equity of 22.55%. The firm had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 7.480-7.580 EPS. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 41.95%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.41, for a total value of $5,676,256.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 72,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,989,868.04. This trade represents a 23.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 23,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This trade represents a 3.37% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. UBS Group cut their target price on Ecolab from $299.00 to $291.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Evercore ISI upgraded Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $265.00 to $300.00 in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $307.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.14.

Ecolab Profile

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.