B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management Acquires New Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Alpha Capital Management acquired 12,166 Ecolab shares during the second quarter, valued at approximately $3.39 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 74.91% of Ecolab’s stock.
• Ecolab exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.09 in EPS and $4.42 billion in revenue, with revenue up 9.7% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $327.56.
• Ecolab announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, equivalent to a $2.92 annualized payout and a 1.1% yield. Two insiders recently sold shares, while insider ownership stands at 0.50%.

B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management acquired a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 12,166 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $3,390,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 764 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $201,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 730 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 486 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $327.56.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of ECL stock opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $77.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.03, a P/E/G 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 Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.15 and a fifty-two week high of $309.27. The business 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 released its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.73 dividend. 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 presently 39.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the sale, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Company 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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