Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd Invests $701,000 in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,669 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $701,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 88.7% during the third quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,375.0% during the fourth quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 price target (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,087,281.98. This trade represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. This represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $256.28 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $309.27. The stock has a market cap of $72.13 billion, a PE ratio of 34.68, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $261.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.41.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.51%.

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.