428,338 Shares in Ecolab Inc. $ECL Purchased by PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab

Key Points

• PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab established a new position in Ecolab by purchasing 428,338 shares valued at about $113,287,000, representing roughly 0.15% of the company.
• Ecolab reported Q1 EPS of $1.70 (in line with estimates) and revenue of $4.07 billion (up 10% YoY), and issued FY2026 guidance of 8.430–8.630 EPS with Q2 guidance of 2.020–2.120 EPS.
• Analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" consensus with an average price target of $322.53, while insiders have sold shares (the CEO sold 20,000 shares); the stock trades near $259.80 with a market cap of about $73.4 billion.

PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 428,338 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $113,287,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab owned approximately 0.15% of Ecolab at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Corundum Trust Company INC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its position in Ecolab by 1,177.8% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings lowered Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Erste Group Bank lowered Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Ecolab from $310.00 to $285.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $322.53.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $259.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $73.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $249.04 and a 52-week high of $309.27. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $275.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $273.25.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. The company'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, equities research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab's payout ratio is currently 39.51%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the sale, the director owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

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.

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