Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Given Outperform Rating at Royal Bank Of Canada

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $337.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 37.20% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on ECL. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Ecolab from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. BNP Paribas Exane reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $321.06.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock traded down $3.58 on Tuesday, reaching $245.63. The company had a trading volume of 98,315 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,420,681. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.13 billion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s 50-day moving average is $265.87 and its 200 day moving average is $271.69. Ecolab has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business 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. The firm’s 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 forecast that Ecolab will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,327,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,649,026,000 after acquiring an additional 137,578 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 63.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,883,084 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,069,468,000 after purchasing an additional 441,747 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,472,599,000 after purchasing an additional 46,569 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $1,022,334,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ecolab

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.