Seaport Res Ptn Issues Negative Outlook for Ecolab Earnings

Key Points

• Seaport Res Ptn has lowered its Q3 2025 earnings estimate for Ecolab to $2.07 per share from $2.08, maintaining a "Strong-Buy" rating on the stock.
• Several analysts have adjusted their price targets for Ecolab, with Stifel Nicolaus and Citigroup reducing theirs while other firms upgraded their ratings.
• Ecolab recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65, resulting in an annual yield of 1.0% and a dividend payout ratio of 34.71%.

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Seaport Res Ptn dropped their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for Ecolab in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, July 29th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now expects that the basic materials company will post earnings of $2.07 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.08. Seaport Res Ptn has a "Strong-Buy" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ecolab's current full-year earnings is $7.54 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Ecolab's Q1 2026 earnings at $1.82 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $8.59 EPS.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 13.59%. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on ECL. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. UBS Group raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W raised Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $290.71.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL traded up $1.80 on Friday, hitting $266.08. 591,953 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,322,839. Ecolab has a 12 month low of $221.62 and a 12 month high of $274.17. The business has a 50-day moving average of $266.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $256.92. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $75.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.06.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 42,899 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $10,876,000 after purchasing an additional 2,651 shares during the period. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 32.4% during the 1st quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 14,005 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,551,000 after purchasing an additional 3,428 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 5,576 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,414,000 after purchasing an additional 754 shares during the period. Mirabaud & Cie SA raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Mirabaud & Cie SA now owns 5,092 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,291,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 19.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 120,176 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,467,000 after acquiring an additional 19,431 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $251.75 per share, with a total value of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 19,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,900,313.75. This represents a 2.64% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.71%.

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.