Equitable Trust Co. Boosts Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Equitable Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 314.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,805 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,403 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,590,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth $847,544,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,898,565,000 after buying an additional 527,902 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 115.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $193,753,000 after buying an additional 389,981 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 64.5% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $240,676,000 after buying an additional 344,541 shares during the period. Finally, Bornite Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $68,465,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $305.39 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $279.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.27. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.62 and a 52-week high of $306.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $86.50 billion, a PE ratio of 41.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.99.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan bought 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $257.60 per share, with a total value of $193,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at $5,933,816. This represents a 3.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ECL. Citigroup increased their target price on Ecolab from $324.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Mizuho set a $335.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.56.

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.