Ecolab Inc. $ECL Holdings Trimmed by Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 48.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,850 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,570 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,602,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at about $847,544,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,898,565,000 after purchasing an additional 527,902 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Ecolab by 195.9% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 670,778 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $183,699,000 after purchasing an additional 444,053 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab by 115.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Ecolab in the third quarter worth approximately $97,664,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE:ECL opened at $258.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $72.89 billion, a PE ratio of 35.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.97. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.62 and a fifty-two week high of $309.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $286.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $274.19.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. The firm’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 40.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 price target on Ecolab and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 price objective on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Mizuho set a $335.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $322.24.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

About Ecolab

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.