Securian Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 43.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,931 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,336 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 975 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,201 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Kampmann Melissa S. raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Kampmann Melissa S. now owns 13,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,746,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ECL shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Ecolab from $310.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.53.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $256.91 per share, with a total value of $205,528.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 24,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,224,929.30. This represents a 3.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $251.00 on Tuesday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $249.04 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.64 billion, a PE ratio of 33.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $270.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $272.60.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid 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 is currently 39.51%.

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.