Ecolab Inc. $ECL Stock Holdings Trimmed by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lowered its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 28.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 542,676 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 213,222 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $142,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1,375.0% in the 4th quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $268.88 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.38, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $261.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $271.26. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 39.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have bought a total of 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,719,508 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on ECL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ecolab from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.41.

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.