Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC reduced its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 121,274 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,434 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $32,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Ecolab by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,718,633 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $453,857,000 after purchasing an additional 65,836 shares during the last quarter. Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $97,000. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,862 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $751,000 after buying an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in Ecolab by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 11,130 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,922,000 after purchasing an additional 903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,338,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 target price on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Ecolab from $310.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $325.50.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total transaction of $6,147,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the sale, the director directly owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,760.28. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Trading Up 2.0%

ECL stock opened at $261.68 on Tuesday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $221.62 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business’s 50 day moving average is $286.44 and its 200-day moving average is $273.95. The firm has a market cap of $73.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.97.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 40.11%.

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.