Erste Asset Management GmbH Lowers Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Erste Asset Management GmbH lowered its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 15.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 160,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 30,371 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $43,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 64.5% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $240,676,000 after buying an additional 344,541 shares during the period. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 72,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $19,773,000 after acquiring an additional 14,800 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $18,254,000 after acquiring an additional 11,322 shares during the period. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. grew its position in Ecolab by 162.4% in the 3rd quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 5,364 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 3,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its stake in Ecolab by 1.7% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 597,913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $163,744,000 after purchasing an additional 9,837 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In related news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,505,760.28. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of Ecolab 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 owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $306.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $86.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.09, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $281.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.97. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $221.62 and a 12 month high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. 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 fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors 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 yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 40.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $312.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Ecolab from $324.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.56.

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.