Grandfield & Dodd LLC Makes New Investment in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Grandfield & Dodd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 28,739 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,007,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its stake in Ecolab by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 330,698 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,670,000 after purchasing an additional 68,062 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Ecolab by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,870,000 after purchasing an additional 6,238 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in Ecolab by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 163,731 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,464,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 21,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,641,000 after buying an additional 4,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 251,977 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $66,149,000 after buying an additional 20,247 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.1%

ECL opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.03, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $275.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $273.67. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.15 and a twelve month high of $309.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its 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. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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. Oppenheimer raised Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Suzanne M. Vautrinot sold 1,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.98, for a total value of $266,039.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,087,281.98. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. The trade was a 1,345.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.