Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Has $2.89 Million Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP cut its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 82.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,541 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 50,900 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Corundum Trust Company INC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1,177.8% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 81.5% during the second 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 during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter worth $47,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Tracy B. Mckibben sold 1,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.66, for a total transaction of $390,454.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Christophe Beck sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 90,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,907,351.78. This represents a 18.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ecolab from $265.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $315.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Berenberg Bank raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.71.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $273.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $77.06 billion, a PE ratio of 37.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 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 current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $287.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $274.41.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly 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. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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 research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.11%.

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.