Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA Sells 24,836 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA cut its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 77.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,197 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 24,836 shares during the period. Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ECL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,190,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,898,565,000 after buying an additional 527,902 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position 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. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $113,287,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Ecolab by 594.6% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 493,525 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $129,560,000 after purchasing an additional 422,471 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $193,753,000 after purchasing an additional 389,981 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.53.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $256.91 per share, for a total transaction of $205,528.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 24,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,224,929.30. This trade represents a 3.41% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $254.07 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $272.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.98. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $249.04 and a one year high of $309.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $71.51 billion, a PE ratio of 34.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.92.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.51%.

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.