Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its stake in Ecolab by 32.4%, selling 54,135 shares in Q4 and now holds 113,169 shares worth about $29.71 million.
• CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares for roughly $6.15 million (an 18.05% reduction in his holding), and corporate insiders now own just 0.50% of the stock.
• Ecolab reported Q results of $2.08 EPS (beat by $0.01) on $4.19B revenue, issued FY2026 EPS guidance of 8.430–8.630, and carries a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $322.82 target.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lowered its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 32.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 113,169 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 54,135 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Ecolab were worth $29,709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Ecolab by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,898,565,000 after buying an additional 527,902 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Ecolab by 195.9% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $183,699,000 after buying an additional 444,053 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Ecolab by 594.6% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 493,525 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $129,560,000 after buying an additional 422,471 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 115.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $193,753,000 after buying an additional 389,981 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at about $97,664,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $271.55 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $235.62 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $279.39 and a 200-day moving average of $273.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $76.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.30, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.02.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.The company had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,505,760.28. The trade was a 10.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on ECL. UBS Group lowered their price target on Ecolab from $312.00 to $293.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank lowered Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $322.82.

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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