Westpac Banking Corp Acquires New Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Westpac Banking Corp bought a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $695,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in Ecolab in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark acquired 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at $20,431,170.48. This trade represents a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,866 shares of company stock worth $7,878,801. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.56.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2%

ECL opened at $281.91 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $276.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.73. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.15 and a 52 week high of $309.27. The company has a market capitalization of $79.03 billion, a PE ratio of 37.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.19%.

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.