Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Grows Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 262,636 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,225 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $71,925,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of ECL. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 202.6% during the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 81.5% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ECL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $307.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $265.00 to $300.00 in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Erste Group Bank assumed coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Mizuho set a $315.00 price objective on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 23,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,933,816. The trade was a 3.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total value of $381,451.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,999.50. This trade represents a 19.89% 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 corporate insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $273.01 on Wednesday. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $221.62 and a one year high of $286.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $266.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $269.18. The firm has a market cap of $77.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.99.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.55% and a net margin of 12.49%.The company had revenue of $4.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 7.480-7.580 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.95%.

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.