Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Erste Group Bank

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) was downgraded by stock analysts at Erste Group Bank from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports.

ECL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Robert W. Baird set a $307.00 price target on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Ecolab from $303.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Mizuho set a $315.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $296.00.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $281.92 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $267.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $269.42. Ecolab has a 52-week low of $221.62 and a 52-week high of $286.04. The company has a market cap of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 40.51, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.49% and a return on equity of 22.55%. The company had revenue of $4.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 7.480-7.580 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.41, for a total value of $5,676,256.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,989,868.04. This represents a 23.01% 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, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at $5,933,816. This represents a 3.37% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ECL. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 1.3% during the second quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,995 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. lifted 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 purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management boosted its stake in Ecolab by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 7,534 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,030,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Wealth Group Ltd grew its holdings in Ecolab by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Group Ltd now owns 853 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 4.3% during the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 975 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.