Diversified Trust Co. Sells 4,443 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Diversified Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 53.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,938 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,443 shares during the quarter. Diversified Trust Co.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,034,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter valued at $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,505,760.28. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. This trade represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $264.14 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.28, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.97. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $285.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $273.78. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ECL. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $310.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.