Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 298,146 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,998 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $78,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 330,698 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,670,000 after buying an additional 68,062 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,870,000 after buying an additional 6,238 shares during the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 83,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $22,834,000 after buying an additional 13,840 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $18,254,000 after buying an additional 11,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 48,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,240,000 after buying an additional 3,464 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. BNP Paribas Exane restated an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $312.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.53.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.6%

ECL stock opened at $249.17 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $265.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $271.69. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $245.25 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a market cap of $70.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. Ecolab’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. Sell-side analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 39.51%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

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

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.