Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Boosts Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 982,363 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 104,485 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.35% of Ecolab worth $261,305,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ECL has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $324.06.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $267.23 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $75.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.89. The business's 50 day moving average price is $265.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.15. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,087,281.98. This trade represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have bought 10,550 shares of company stock worth $2,719,508 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

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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