Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Amundi

Key Points

• Amundi reduced its Ecolab stake by 10.9% in the second quarter, selling 263,574 shares and retaining 2.15 million shares valued at approximately $598.5 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 74.91% of Ecolab.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on Ecolab, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.56. Recent analyst targets range from $305 to $360.
• Ecolab slightly exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.09 in adjusted EPS on $4.42 billion in revenue, while revenue grew 9.7% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, yielding about 1.0% annually.

Amundi trimmed its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 10.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,148,483 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 263,574 shares during the period. Amundi owned approximately 0.77% of Ecolab worth $598,529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $28,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on ECL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $263.83 per share, for a total transaction of $263,830.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at $285,727.89. This represents a 1,204.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2%

Ecolab stock opened at $279.91 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $278.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $272.99. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.15 and a twelve month high of $309.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.57, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is 39.19%.

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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