Avity Investment Management Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Avity Investment Management reduced its Ecolab position by 7.6% in the third quarter, selling 9,036 shares and retaining 109,125 shares valued at approximately $30.0 million.
• Ecolab reported quarterly EPS of $2.09, slightly exceeding 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, equivalent to a 1.0% annual yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Ecolab carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $327.67, above its recent trading price of $281.62.

Avity Investment Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 109,125 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 9,036 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for approximately 1.8% of Avity Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Ecolab were worth $29,964,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,422,340,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $244,381,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.5% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,617,425 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,007,851,000 after buying an additional 51,712 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,412,057 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $641,609,000 after acquiring an additional 88,096 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 58.8% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,243,825 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $596,902,000 after acquiring an additional 830,726 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.0%

ECL stock traded down $0.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $281.62. The company had a trading volume of 934,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,443,981. The stock has a market cap of $78.95 billion, a PE ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $279.19 and a 200-day moving average of $270.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. Ecolab's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ecolab from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 31st. One 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $327.67.

About Ecolab

Ecolab Inc NYSE: ECL is a global provider of water, hygiene, infection prevention and related services. The company helps businesses maintain clean, safe and efficient operations through specialized products, technologies, equipment and on-site expertise.

Its offerings include cleaning and sanitizing solutions, water treatment and process-management systems, food safety programs, infection prevention products, pest elimination services and solutions for industrial operations. Ecolab serves customers in industries including hospitality, healthcare, food and beverage production, life sciences, manufacturing, energy, retail and institutional services.

The company was founded in 1923 as Economics Laboratory and adopted the Ecolab name in 1986.

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