Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC Sells 1,922 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC reduced its position in Ecolab Inc. by 39.5% during Q1, owning 2,944 shares worth $746,000 after selling 1,922 shares.
• Several institutional investors, such as Brighton Jones LLC and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP, significantly increased their holdings in Ecolab during the fourth quarter, indicating a growing interest in the company.
• Ecolab announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.9%, set to be paid on October 15th to investors of record on September 16th.

Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 39.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,944 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,922 shares during the quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $746,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 176.7% during the 1st quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 70.6% during the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the first quarter worth $38,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded up $1.6620 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $285.3220. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,118,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,309,997. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $268.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.19. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.62 and a fifty-two week high of $286.04. The company has a market capitalization of $80.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.06.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 22.52%. Ecolab has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.420-7.620 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ecolab's payout ratio is 34.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total value of $225,378.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,326 shares in the company, valued at $1,208,165.28. This trade represents a 15.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,354 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.16, for a total transaction of $383,398.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,171,108.84. This trade represents a 10.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $293.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W upgraded Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $291.21.

About Ecolab

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.