Ecolab Inc. $ECL Stake Boosted by AMI Asset Management Corp

Key Points

• AMI Asset Management increased its Ecolab stake by 59.4% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 154,042 shares valued at approximately $42.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 74.91% of Ecolab.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Ecolab receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $324.50. Several firms recently raised their targets, including UBS to $344 and Mizuho to $327.
• Ecolab reported quarterly EPS of $2.09, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 9.7% year over year to $4.42 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, equivalent to a 1.0% annualized yield.

AMI Asset Management Corp raised its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 59.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 154,042 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 57,432 shares during the period. Ecolab comprises approximately 2.4% of AMI Asset Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. AMI Asset Management Corp owned 0.05% of Ecolab worth $42,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Abel Hall LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,272 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 315.0% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 5,353 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,470,000 after acquiring an additional 4,063 shares during the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 2.0% during the third quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,202 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,983,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 0.6% during the third quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP now owns 34,270 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $9,410,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter worth $61,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ECL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ecolab from $342.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $324.50.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $287.99 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $80.73 billion, a PE ratio of 36.01, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.87. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $279.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Ecolab Profile

Ecolab Inc is a global provider of water, hygiene, infection prevention and cleaning solutions for businesses and institutions. The company helps customers manage water and energy use, maintain sanitary operations, protect food supplies and comply with health and safety standards.

Ecolab serves customers across industries including food and beverage processing, hospitality, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, institutional facilities and energy. Its offerings include cleaning and sanitizing chemicals, water-treatment and process-management systems, pest-control services, kitchen and housekeeping products, infection-prevention programs, and related equipment, training and consulting services.

Founded in 1923 as Economics Laboratory, the company has expanded from its original focus on cleaning products into a broad range of technology-enabled services and solutions.

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