Ecolab’s (ECL) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Royal Bank Of Canada

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by Royal Bank Of Canada in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $337.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 27.68% from the stock’s previous close.

ECL has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Ecolab from $330.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Ecolab from $323.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $326.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.53.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL traded up $9.72 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $263.95. The stock had a trading volume of 359,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,438,420. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $74.29 billion, a PE ratio of 35.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.92. Ecolab has a one year low of $243.15 and a one year high of $309.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $262.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.41.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.70. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.64% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.430-8.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Ecolab will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $250.65 per share, with a total value of $250,650.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 25,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,323,899.50. This trade represents a 4.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,788,497,000 after acquiring an additional 4,110,472 shares during the period. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $880,506,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in Ecolab by 26,152.0% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 945,072 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,810,000 after buying an additional 941,472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Ecolab by 58.8% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,243,825 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $596,902,000 after acquiring an additional 830,726 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.