iA Global Asset Management Inc. Acquires 1,872 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 20.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,159 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,872 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $3,056,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth about $847,544,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its stake in Ecolab by 119.7% in the second quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,036,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $548,671,000 after buying an additional 1,109,585 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 115.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 727,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $193,753,000 after buying an additional 389,981 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in Ecolab by 64.5% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $240,676,000 after acquiring an additional 344,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,662,213 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,644,987,000 after acquiring an additional 250,980 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total transaction of $381,451.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,535,999.50. This represents a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.41, for a total value of $5,676,256.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,644 shares in the company, valued at $18,989,868.04. This trade represents a 23.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $281.92 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $286.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $267.28 and its 200 day moving average is $269.42. The stock has a market cap of $79.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.51, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

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

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 16th. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Ecolab from $315.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho set a $315.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $265.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $307.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $296.00.

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.