Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 8,648 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp reduced its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 123,866 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 8,648 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $33,922,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Ecolab by 164.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $867,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 39.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 394 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 786 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,476,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 8.2% during the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 1,034 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Erste Group Bank cut Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI upgraded Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $265.00 to $300.00 in a report on Monday, November 3rd. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 target price on Ecolab and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $315.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $303.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $296.00.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $281.92 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 40.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $267.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $269.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.70. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.62 and a 52-week high of $286.04.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.07. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.49% and a return on equity of 22.55%. The company had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue 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. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total transaction of $381,451.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,999.50. This represents a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 21,714 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 72,644 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders own 0.50% 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.