BDFS Capital LLC Makes New $518,000 Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

BDFS Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $518,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $263.83 per share, for a total transaction of $263,830.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. This trade represents a 1,204.82% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 10,550 shares of company stock worth $2,719,508. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.41.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $269.71 on Friday. 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 $75.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $261.47 and its 200-day moving average is $271.17.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.50 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.51%.

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.