Natixis Advisors LLC Sells 10,187 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its Ecolab stake by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 10,187 shares and leaving it with 397,788 shares valued at about $104.4 million.
• Ecolab reported solid quarterly results, matching EPS estimates at $1.70 and beating revenue expectations with $4.07 billion in sales, up 10% year over year.
• The company continues to reward shareholders with a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, and analysts currently view the stock as a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $322.53.

Natixis Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 397,788 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 10,187 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Ecolab worth $104,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at $880,506,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Ecolab by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,898,565,000 after purchasing an additional 527,902 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 195.9% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $183,699,000 after acquiring an additional 444,053 shares during the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $113,287,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in Ecolab by 594.6% in the fourth 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. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $250.65 per share, for a total transaction of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. The trade was a 4.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the sale, the director owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ecolab from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $322.53.

Ecolab Stock Up 2.3%

ECL stock opened at $256.24 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.90. The business has a 50-day moving average of $261.78 and a 200-day moving average of $271.42. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.15 and a fifty-two week high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.70. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.Ecolab's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.51%.

Ecolab 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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