Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management reduced its Ecolab stake by 4.6% in the first quarter, selling 13,711 shares and ending with 284,435 shares worth about $75.36 million.
• Ecolab reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $1.70 matching analyst estimates and revenue of $4.07 billion topping expectations; revenue also rose 10% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, payable July 15, for an annualized yield of about 1.1%.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,435 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 13,711 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.10% of Ecolab worth $75,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Union Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Stock Down 3.1%

Ecolab stock opened at $274.29 on Thursday. 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 $77.20 billion, a PE ratio of 37.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $263.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $272.73. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The business's revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter 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. On average, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders 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 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ecolab from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ecolab from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $323.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab 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 directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This trade represents a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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