ProShare Advisors LLC Sells 43,422 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

ProShare Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 623,873 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 43,422 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $163,779,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Brighton Jones LLC increased 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 stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 22.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.8% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,684,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 49.4% during the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,741,000 after purchasing an additional 19,324 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $249.17 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.72, 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $265.87 and a 200 day moving average of $271.69. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $245.25 and a twelve month high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued 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 (DPR) is currently 39.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ECL. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $310.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued 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 $322.53.

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.