Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Has $7.69 Million Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 28.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,302 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,537 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $7,692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 164.7% in the 4th 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 during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,684,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 49.4% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,741,000 after purchasing an additional 19,324 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,087,281.98. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $296.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of 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. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.53.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL opened at $263.88 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $261.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $271.36. The stock has a market cap of $74.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.90.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.48 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

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.