Raiffeisen Bank International AG Decreases Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Raiffeisen Bank International AG reduced its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 252,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,525 shares during the quarter. Ecolab makes up 0.9% of Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Raiffeisen Bank International AG owned about 0.09% of Ecolab worth $68,883,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Ecolab by 2.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,898,565,000 after purchasing an additional 527,902 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $847,544,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its stake in Ecolab by 3.6% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Ecolab by 9.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,497,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $674,497,000 after acquiring an additional 205,634 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 23,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This trade represents a 3.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total transaction of $381,451.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,999.50. This trade represents a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $304.07 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $221.62 and a one year high of $306.52. The company has a market cap of $86.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.77, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $278.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $272.94.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued 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 business had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.81 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ECL shares. Erste Group Bank downgraded Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 price objective on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.76.

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.