Erste Group Bank Predicts Ecolab FY2027 Earnings

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) – Equities researchers at Erste Group Bank issued their FY2027 EPS estimates for Ecolab in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel forecasts that the basic materials company will post earnings per share of $9.70 for the year. Erste Group Bank has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ecolab’s current full-year earnings is $7.54 per share.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS.

ECL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho set a $335.00 price objective on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 target price (up previously from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.76.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $304.07 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $278.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.02. Ecolab has a one year low of $221.62 and a one year high of $306.52. The stock has a market cap of $86.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.77, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.99.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 63.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,788,497,000 after purchasing an additional 4,110,472 shares during the period. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $880,506,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 104.7% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,591,274 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $417,747,000 after acquiring an additional 813,996 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Ecolab by 65.2% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,413,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $370,967,000 after purchasing an additional 557,555 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan acquired 750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This represents a 3.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.11%.

About Ecolab

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.