Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 63.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,110,472 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 3.75% of Ecolab worth $2,788,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 1,375.0% during the fourth quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 88.7% during the third quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pekao Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych S.A. acquired a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and set a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $295.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $325.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One investment 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 MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $322.53.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 25,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. This trade represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $257.41 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm's 50-day moving average is $261.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $271.35. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a market capitalization of $72.44 billion, a PE ratio of 34.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.90.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 22.64%. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. Ecolab's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. 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 1.1%. Ecolab's payout ratio is 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.