Saudi Central Bank Acquires 8,384 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Saudi Central Bank boosted its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 89.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 17,793 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,384 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $4,957,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,422,340,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 63.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,788,497,000 after purchasing an additional 4,110,472 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,883,084 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,069,468,000 after purchasing an additional 441,747 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $244,381,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,472,599,000 after purchasing an additional 46,569 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL stock opened at $279.91 on Monday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.15 and a 1-year high of $309.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $78.47 billion, a PE ratio of 37.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $278.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.99.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $285,727.89. This trade represents a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. This trade represents a 23.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.56.

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.