OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Makes New $6.68 Million Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 23,967 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,677,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ECL. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,422,340,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Ecolab by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,788,497,000 after acquiring an additional 4,110,472 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth approximately $880,506,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $413,381,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was acquired 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 owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, 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 the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total transaction of $266,039.92. Following the sale, the director owned 11,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 28,866 shares of company stock valued at $7,878,801 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $287.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $276.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.69.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

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.