Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Grows Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,085 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,255 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $7,965,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 1.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,662,213 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,644,987,000 after acquiring an additional 250,980 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 0.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,479,529 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,469,019,000 after buying an additional 22,986 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $847,544,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its position in Ecolab by 3.6% in the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,610,791 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $703,452,000 after acquiring an additional 90,005 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi raised its holdings in Ecolab by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,497,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $674,497,000 after purchasing an additional 205,634 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $257.60 per share, with a total value of $193,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at $5,933,816. The trade was a 3.37% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.41, for a total transaction of $5,676,256.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,989,868.04. This trade represents a 23.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Erste Group Bank started coverage on shares of Ecolab in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays increased their price target on Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 target price on Ecolab and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Mizuho set a $315.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $294.92.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $271.74 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $263.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $268.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.04, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.99. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $221.62 and a 52 week high of $286.04.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.95%.

Ecolab 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.