National Pension Service Increases Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

National Pension Service lifted its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 31.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 788,288 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 190,375 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $206,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 88.7% in the third quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,375.0% in the fourth quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Down 1.5%

Ecolab stock opened at $256.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.68, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.92. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.15 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $261.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $271.41.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue 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. Equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. The trade was a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ECL. Berenberg Bank upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. UBS Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.