Bailard Inc. Has $2.73 Million Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Bailard Inc. reduced its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,131 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ECL. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.3% in the second quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,995 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $807,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $805,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management lifted its position in Ecolab by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 7,534 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,030,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its stake in Ecolab by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 2,199 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Mizuho set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.14.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $261.04 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $73.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50-day moving average is $269.33 and its 200 day moving average is $267.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.70. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.62 and a fifty-two week high of $286.04.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07. The business had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.49% and a return on equity of 22.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.57 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.480-7.580 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,354 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.16, for a total value of $383,398.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,171,108.84. This represents a 10.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

About Ecolab

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.