Confluence Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Confluence Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Ecolab Inc. by 3.0% in Q2, now holding 105,654 shares valued at approximately $28.47 million.
• Ecolab announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.0%, payable on October 15th to investors of record on September 16th.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Ecolab, with UBS adjusting their target to $295.00 and BMO Capital to $310.00, reflecting a generally optimistic outlook on the stock.

Confluence Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 105,654 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 3,220 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $28,467,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 176.7% in the 1st quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 70.6% in the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:ECL opened at $272.74 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $221.62 and a 52 week high of $286.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $272.57 and a 200 day moving average of $261.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.41, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.07.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.01). Ecolab had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.420-7.620 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.71%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,354 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.16, for a total transaction of $383,398.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,171,108.84. This represents a 10.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $278.51 per share, for a total transaction of $167,106.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 20,253 shares in the company, valued at $5,640,663.03. This represents a 3.05% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ECL shares. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $293.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $307.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $292.00.

Ecolab Company Profile

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.

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