S&CO Inc. Buys Shares of 225,862 Ecolab Inc. $ECL

S&CO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 225,862 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,927,000. Ecolab comprises approximately 3.6% of S&CO Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Ecolab by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,788,497,000 after purchasing an additional 4,110,472 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $880,506,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 26,152.0% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 945,072 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $24,810,000 after purchasing an additional 941,472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 58.8% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,243,825 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $596,902,000 after purchasing an additional 830,726 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho boosted their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $276.28 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $274.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $273.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.84. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27. The firm has a market cap of $77.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 39.19%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. This trade represents a 7.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Company 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.