Legal & General Group Plc Makes New $495.11 Million Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,777,070 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,109,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.63% of Ecolab at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 38.7% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,870,000 after purchasing an additional 6,238 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Ecolab by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 163,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $43,464,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth $115,674,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth $16,698,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 21,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,641,000 after buying an additional 4,886 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $290.01 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average of $277.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.71. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27. The company has a market cap of $81.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.93, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.88.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The company had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total transaction of $5,003,860.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Company Profile

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.