New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Sells 13,197 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its Ecolab stake by 20.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 13,197 shares and leaving it with 50,263 shares valued at about $13.2 million.
• Insiders also sold shares, including CEO Christophe Beck, who sold 20,000 shares, and Director Tracy B. Mckibben, who sold 1,265 shares in separate transactions.
• Ecolab reported solid quarterly results and kept an upbeat outlook, with earnings matching estimates, revenue topping expectations, and the company reaffirming FY2026 guidance; it also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 20.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,263 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 13,197 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for about 0.6% of New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $13,195,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ECL. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in Ecolab by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 330,698 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $86,670,000 after purchasing an additional 68,062 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Ecolab by 38.7% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,870,000 after purchasing an additional 6,238 shares in the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions grew its stake in Ecolab by 19.9% in the third quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 83,379 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $22,834,000 after purchasing an additional 13,840 shares in the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Ecolab by 7.7% in the third quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 48,231 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $13,240,000 after purchasing an additional 3,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Ecolab by 20.5% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $18,254,000 after purchasing an additional 11,322 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $253.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $263.35 and a 200-day moving average of $271.48. The company has a market capitalization of $71.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.92.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business 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%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $295.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $320.65.

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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