Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Decreases Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA lowered its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 31.0% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 116,879 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 52,511 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $29,506,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its stake in Ecolab by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. increased its position in Ecolab by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 764 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $201,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 730 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $192,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $283.71 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 38.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s 50 day moving average is $261.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $271.49.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion during 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $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. Equities analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 39.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris acquired 7,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on ECL. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.71.

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.