14,280 Shares in Ecolab Inc. $ECL Acquired by Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc.

Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 14,280 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $3,799,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Ecolab by 4.0% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 98,004 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $26,416,000 after purchasing an additional 3,727 shares during the period. Independent Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter worth $352,000. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 5.7% during the first quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 2,720 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $724,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.9% in the first quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp now owns 63,340 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $16,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,781 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 25.1% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 39,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $10,624,000 after purchasing an additional 8,017 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $275.57 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $264.59 and a 200 day moving average of $273.03. 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 market capitalization of $77.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.89. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The business had revenue of $4.07 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter 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. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is 39.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. UBS Group raised shares of Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $325.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $324.29.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $263.83 per share, for a total transaction of $263,830.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $285,727.89. This trade represents a 1,204.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,539,712.37. This represents a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Ecolab 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.

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