Baillie Gifford & Co. Reduces Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its stake in Ecolab by 2.9% in Q4, selling 20,664 shares and leaving it with 691,003 shares (about 0.24% of the company) valued at roughly $181.4 million.
• Insider selling included CEO Christophe Beck offloading 20,000 shares for about $6.15 million (an 18.05% reduction in his holding) and director Tracy B. McKibben selling 1,265 shares for ~$390,455.
• Ecolab announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share (annualized $2.92, yield 1.1%) and issued FY2026 EPS guidance of 8.430–8.630 (Q1 guidance 1.670–1.730), after reporting quarterly EPS of $2.08, slightly above estimates.

Baillie Gifford & Co. lowered its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 691,003 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 20,664 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned 0.24% of Ecolab worth $181,402,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. The trade was a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $273.59 on Monday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $228.73 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The firm has a market cap of $77.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.58, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $282.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $273.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be 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 is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab's payout ratio is currently 40.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ecolab from $294.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $295.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $322.38.

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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