Raiffeisen Bank International AG Decreases Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Raiffeisen Bank International AG trimmed its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 12.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 221,499 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 30,902 shares during the quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $58,582,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 164.7% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 39.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its position in Ecolab by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $314,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,684,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Ecolab by 49.4% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,741,000 after purchasing an additional 19,324 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,323,899.50. The trade was a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders bought 9,550 shares of company stock worth $2,455,678. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $264.30 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $74.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.90. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.15 and a twelve month high of $309.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a 50 day moving average of $261.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $271.31.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. Ecolab’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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. 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 (DPR) is 39.51%.

Ecolab News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Ecolab this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director Michel Doukeris bought 7,750 shares at $258 each, a $2.0 million purchase that signals confidence in Ecolab’s outlook and can support the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Ecolab also reaffirmed investor-friendly fundamentals, including a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share and full-year 2026 guidance of $8.43 to $8.63 EPS, which may help investors view the shares as a stable long-term hold. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive overall, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target around $323.41, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside despite near-term noise. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: COO Darrell Brown sold 10,000 shares for about $2.6 million, which can weigh on sentiment because insider selling sometimes raises questions about short-term confidence. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group trimmed its FY2026 and FY2027 EPS estimates slightly, a small but negative sign that profit expectations have softened a bit. Article Title

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ECL. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.41.

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.