Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Takes Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 8,320 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,318,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ECL. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth $60,000. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $217,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,871,000. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth $598,000. Finally, Cornerstone Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $16,698,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ECL shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL opened at $280.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $78.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $275.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $273.66.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its 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. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. The trade was a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.