Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $322.5294.

ECL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. The trade was a 4.13% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.2%

ECL opened at $249.14 on Friday. 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 has a 1-year low of $248.60 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The company has a market capitalization of $70.12 billion, a PE ratio of 33.71, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $267.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $272.05.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. 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 will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

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.