114,612 Shares in Ecolab Inc. $ECL Acquired by Nykredit A S

Key Points

• Nykredit A/S acquired 114,612 Ecolab shares worth approximately $31.9 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 74.91% of Ecolab.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Ecolab receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $327.56. Recent target increases included BMO Capital Markets at $360 and UBS at $342.
• Ecolab reported quarterly EPS of $2.09, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 9.7% year over year to $4.42 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, representing a 1.1% annualized yield.

Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 114,612 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $31,932,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its position 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 worth $43,464,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $115,674,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $16,698,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth $880,506,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,472,599,000 after purchasing an additional 46,569 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,932 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,431,170.48. This represents a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ECL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ecolab from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $342.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.8%

Ecolab stock opened at $269.61 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $277.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $271.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.19, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.84. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The business's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab's payout ratio is 39.19%.

About Ecolab

Ecolab Inc NYSE: ECL provides water, hygiene, infection prevention and technology solutions to businesses and institutions worldwide. Its customers include restaurants, hotels, hospitals, manufacturers, food and beverage companies, retailers and other organizations that rely on safe, efficient and sustainable operating environments.

The company's offerings include cleaning and sanitizing products, water-treatment and process-management systems, food-safety programs, infection-prevention solutions and pest-elimination services.

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