Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Stock Price

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its price objective decreased by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $285.00 to $260.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 4.34% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on Ecolab from $312.00 to $293.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. BNP Paribas Exane reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 price target (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Citigroup lowered 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped 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 assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $321.06.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $249.17 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.92. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $245.25 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $265.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $271.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced 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 firm 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business 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. Equities analysts predict that Ecolab will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the 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 represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 25,230 shares in the company, valued at $6,323,899.50. This represents a 4.13% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 330,698 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $86,670,000 after buying an additional 68,062 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,870,000 after buying an additional 6,238 shares during the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 83,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $22,834,000 after buying an additional 13,840 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 48,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,240,000 after buying an additional 3,464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 20.5% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 11,322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

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.