Christophe Beck Sells 17,862 Shares of Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Stock

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at $20,431,170.48. This trade represents a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2%

ECL opened at $281.91 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $276.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. 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, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 39.19%.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECL. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 11.4% in the 2nd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 37,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,516,000 after acquiring an additional 3,873 shares in the last quarter. Syntax Research Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $645,000. Kampmann Melissa S. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 0.5% during the second quarter. Kampmann Melissa S. now owns 13,423 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,740,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Ecolab by 14.6% during the second quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 41,791 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $11,643,000 after purchasing an additional 5,309 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 90.4% in the second quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 7,497 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,089,000 after purchasing an additional 3,560 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ECL shares. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Monday. Finally, Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

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.