Trust Co. of Vermont Takes Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 71,350 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,879,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 63.1% in 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 purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $1,022,334,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at about $880,506,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at about $413,381,000. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in Ecolab by 26,152.0% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 945,072 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $24,810,000 after purchasing an additional 941,472 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, EVP Benjamin M. Clark acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total transaction of $2,608,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market cap of $77.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $275.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.67. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $309.27.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

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.