Nordea Investment Management AB Has $452.39 Million Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,652,797 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,795 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB owned 0.58% of Ecolab worth $452,387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 64.5% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $240,676,000 after acquiring an additional 344,541 shares in the last quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 72,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $19,773,000 after purchasing an additional 14,800 shares in the last quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter worth approximately $2,104,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.3% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 205,951 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $56,402,000 after purchasing an additional 4,670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 9.2% during the third quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 62,911 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,169,000 after buying an additional 5,323 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.3%

Ecolab stock opened at $270.96 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $263.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $269.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $221.62 and a twelve month high of $286.04. The company has a market capitalization of $76.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.99.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.07. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.55% and a net margin of 12.49%.The business had revenue of $4.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.57 earnings per share. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. 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 analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.41, for a total transaction of $5,676,256.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,644 shares in the company, valued at $18,989,868.04. This represents a 23.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was 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 directly owned 5,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,535,999.50. The trade was a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $265.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Mizuho set a $315.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $303.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $294.92.

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.