Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Ecolab has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating among 22 brokerages, with 17 buys, three holds, one sell and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $327.56 versus a recent price of $275.87.
• Ecolab slightly exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $2.09 versus the $2.08 consensus and revenue of $4.42 billion, up 9.7% year over year. The company guided for third-quarter EPS of $2.13–$2.23.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, equating to an annualized $2.92 dividend and a 1.1% yield. Institutional investors own approximately 74.91% of Ecolab’s shares.

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-two brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $327.5556.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ECL shares. Zacks Research lowered Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $77.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.03, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Ecolab has a twelve month low of $243.15 and a twelve month high of $309.27. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $275.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $273.67.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 EPS. The business's quarterly 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. Sell-side analysts expect that Ecolab will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is 39.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. The trade was a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This trade represents a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in Ecolab by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 330,698 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $86,670,000 after buying an additional 68,062 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Ecolab by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,870,000 after purchasing an additional 6,238 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 163,731 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $43,464,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 21,488 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,641,000 after buying an additional 4,886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 251,977 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $66,149,000 after acquiring an additional 20,247 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source