Dearborn Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Dearborn Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 70,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,643,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 164.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $867,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 39.8% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 394 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised 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 worth $314,000 after buying an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 0.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,684,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 19,324 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $286.13 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $278.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.15 and a 12-month high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price 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 $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. The trade was a 1,345.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Zacks Research lowered Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

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.