Boomfish Wealth Group LLC Cuts Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Boomfish Wealth Group sharply cut its Ecolab stake by 87.8% in Q1, selling 5,441 shares and ending with 759 shares worth about $202,000.
• Insider activity was mixed: Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares, while COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares. Over the last three months, insiders have net bought shares valued at $2.7 million.
• Ecolab reported solid results and guidance, with Q1 EPS of $1.70 matching estimates and revenue of $4.07 billion topping expectations. The company also maintained its full-year 2026 EPS guidance and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share.

Boomfish Wealth Group LLC lessened its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 87.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 759 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,441 shares during the quarter. Boomfish Wealth Group LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $202,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Ecolab by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,788,497,000 after buying an additional 4,110,472 shares during the period. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at about $880,506,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 26,152.0% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 945,072 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $24,810,000 after acquiring an additional 941,472 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 104.7% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,591,274 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $417,747,000 after acquiring an additional 813,996 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. The trade was a 4.13% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have bought a total of 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on ECL. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $326.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $337.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Citigroup upped 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $323.71.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $283.71 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $261.68 and its 200 day moving average is $271.49. The company has a market cap of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 38.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The business's revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.50 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ECL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.