UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Purchases 51,712 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.5% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,617,425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 51,712 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,007,851,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $6,422,340,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $244,381,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake 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 valued at $2,788,497,000 after acquiring an additional 4,110,472 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors bought a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $1,022,334,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $880,506,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This represents a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris acquired 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred 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 purchase, the director owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $287.06 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.47 billion, a PE ratio of 38.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.88. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $278.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $273.80. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.15 and a twelve month high of $309.27.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

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.