Chesapeake Capital Corp IL Takes $1.02 Million Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Chesapeake Capital Corp IL bought a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,706 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,015,000. Ecolab accounts for about 0.9% of Chesapeake Capital Corp IL’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ECL. Corundum Trust Company INC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew 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 worth $31,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in 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 valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter worth $47,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $274.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The company has a market cap of $77.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.65, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $287.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $274.53.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 12.91%.Ecolab’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ECL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total value of $390,454.90. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.37, for a total value of $6,147,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares in the company, valued at $27,907,351.78. The trade was a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.