Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Davis R M Inc.

Davis R M Inc. decreased its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 21.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,152 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 15,451 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $15,248,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL stock opened at $267.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.16, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.89. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $265.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.15.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,148,108. The trade was a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ECL. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research cut Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday. Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.06.

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.