Brokerages Set Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Price Target at $323.56

by · The Markets Daily

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $323.5625.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on ECL shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Ecolab from $324.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 price target on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 target price on Ecolab and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on ECL

Ecolab Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $308.06 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $282.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.20. Ecolab has a 52 week low of $221.62 and a 52 week high of $309.27. The stock has a market cap of $86.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.32, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Ecolab will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.11%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. This trade represents a 18.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $257.60 per share, with a total value of $193,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 23,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,933,816. This trade represents a 3.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Ecolab by 64.5% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $240,676,000 after buying an additional 344,541 shares during the last quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 25.8% in the 3rd quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 72,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $19,773,000 after acquiring an additional 14,800 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 20.5% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $18,254,000 after acquiring an additional 11,322 shares during the last quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in Ecolab by 162.4% during the third quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 5,364 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 3,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its position in Ecolab by 1.7% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 597,913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $163,744,000 after purchasing an additional 9,837 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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