Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $721,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 764 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $201,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 730 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $192,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris acquired 7,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ECL shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Monday. Mizuho raised their target price on Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE ECL opened at $285.28 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $275.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.68. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $79.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.88.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab’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. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 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.