Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 630,111 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $175,555,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.22% of Ecolab as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $188,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at $1,600,000. Hikari Power Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $254,000. Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $10,507,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the second quarter valued at $6,194,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $337.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $327.56.
Read Our Latest Report on Ecolab
Insider Transactions at Ecolab
In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% 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 Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,651 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Ecolab Stock Performance
Shares of ECL opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $275.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.33 billion, a PE ratio of 37.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27.
Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue 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, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Ecolab Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab's payout ratio is 39.19%.
Ecolab Profile
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Free Report)
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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