Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $324.06.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL stock opened at $264.05 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Ecolab has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $309.27. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $265.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $273.12.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its 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 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 analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 expect that Ecolab will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were purchased 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 directly owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 10,550 shares of company stock worth $2,719,508. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Ecolab by 63.1% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,788,497,000 after purchasing an additional 4,110,472 shares during the period. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $880,506,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 26,152.0% during the fourth 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 boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 58.8% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,243,825 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $596,902,000 after buying an additional 830,726 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% 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.