Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan Sells 3,246 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan cut its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 8.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,377 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,246 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $9,578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted 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 worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 39.8% during the second 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 last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 22.9% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 0.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,684,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 49.4% during the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,741,000 after acquiring an additional 19,324 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.4%

ECL opened at $287.06 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $80.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.53, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $278.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $273.80.

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 company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on ECL. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho lifted 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. Zacks Research lowered shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris acquired 7,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This trade represents a 23.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab 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.