Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab Invests $10.65 Million in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 38,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,650,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ECL has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased 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 directly owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,727.89. This represents a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $280.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.59 billion, a PE ratio of 37.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $275.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The business had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 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.