15,401 Shares in Ecolab Inc. $ECL Bought by Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC

Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 15,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,291,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Ecolab by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,870,000 after buying an additional 6,238 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 163,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $43,464,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $115,674,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $16,698,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 21,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,641,000 after purchasing an additional 4,886 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Mizuho raised their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total transaction of $5,003,860.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris acquired 7,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of ECL stock opened at $290.87 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The stock has a market cap of $81.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $277.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.73.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

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.