Mirabaud & Cie SA Reduces Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Mirabaud & Cie SA lowered its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 41.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,792 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Mirabaud & Cie SA’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $778,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,327,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,649,026,000 after buying an additional 137,578 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Ecolab by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,883,084 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,069,468,000 after acquiring an additional 441,747 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,472,599,000 after acquiring an additional 46,569 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,022,334,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL stock opened at $283.29 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $271.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.68. The stock has a market cap of $79.73 billion, a PE ratio of 38.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27. 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 (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on ECL. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One investment 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,727.89. This represents a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 9,750 shares of company stock valued at $2,513,980. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.