Haven Capital Group Inc. Sells 3,745 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Haven Capital Group Inc. lowered its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 24.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,683 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,745 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for about 2.8% of Haven Capital Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Haven Capital Group Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $3,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Corundum Trust Company INC bought a new position in Ecolab in the third quarter worth $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Ecolab by 93.6% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,358 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,760.28. The trade was a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 23,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BNP Paribas Exane reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $312.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird set a $327.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.56.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $297.73 on Thursday. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $221.62 and a 12-month high of $309.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $284.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $274.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $83.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.97.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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 expect that Ecolab Inc. 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.11%.

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.