Insider Selling: Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) CEO Sells $5,003,860.68 in Stock

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total transaction of $5,003,860.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,431,170.48. This trade represents a 19.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2%

ECL stock opened at $281.91 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $276.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $273.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ECL shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research cut shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

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.