Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Cuts Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lowered its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,294 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,004 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $15,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at $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. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $256.28 on Monday. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $309.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $261.94 and a 200-day moving average of $271.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.13 billion, a PE ratio of 34.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.70. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 39.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Mizuho set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.53.

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.