CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. Makes New Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 106,382 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,134,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ECL. Wexford Capital LP bought a new position in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Corundum Trust Company INC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in Ecolab by 1,177.8% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ECL. Berenberg Bank raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.24.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $261.93 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $73.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.97. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.62 and a 52-week high of $309.27. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $287.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $274.29.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm 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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.