Cullinan Associates Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Cullinan Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,979 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 6,653 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $8,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,870,000 after buying an additional 6,238 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its position in Ecolab by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 163,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,464,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP purchased a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter worth $115,674,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $16,698,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 21,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,641,000 after acquiring an additional 4,886 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $337.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Monday, August 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $287.06 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $278.36 and a 200-day moving average of $273.80. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $309.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.53, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.88.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue 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, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,727.89. This represents a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

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.