Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Stake in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 404,055 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 16,244 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.14% of Ecolab worth $110,641,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 21,803 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,971,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. PFG Advisors grew its stake in Ecolab by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 1,032 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at about $767,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG raised its position in Ecolab by 4.5% during the third quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 11,527 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,157,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC raised its position in Ecolab by 3.9% during the third quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 289,572 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $79,302,000 after acquiring an additional 10,792 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho set a $335.00 target price on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.56.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $282.15 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $285.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $274.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.76, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.97. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $221.62 and a 1 year high of $309.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.670-1.730 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is presently 40.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. This trade represents a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the business’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,505,760.28. This represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab 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.