NewEdge Wealth LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

NewEdge Wealth LLC lessened its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 14.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,349 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,216 shares during the quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $3,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 164.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 39.8% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its stake in Ecolab by 22.9% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 0.8% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,684,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 49.4% during the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,741,000 after purchasing an additional 19,324 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE:ECL opened at $268.73 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.15 and a 12-month high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $266.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $273.12. The firm has a market cap of $75.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.36, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.89.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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. Equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at $8,539,712.37. This represents a 23.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.06.

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.