Swedbank AB Reduces Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Swedbank AB decreased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,628,340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 32,980 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $427,472,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted 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 worth $6,898,565,000 after acquiring an additional 527,902 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 195.9% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $183,699,000 after acquiring an additional 444,053 shares during the period. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth $113,287,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in Ecolab by 594.6% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 493,525 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $129,560,000 after purchasing an additional 422,471 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 115.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $193,753,000 after purchasing an additional 389,981 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE ECL opened at $257.63 on Wednesday. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.04 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The stock has a market cap of $72.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $274.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.51%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $256.91 per share, for a total transaction of $205,528.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,224,929.30. The trade was a 3.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Berenberg Bank upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Mizuho set a $335.00 price objective on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $322.53.

About Ecolab

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.