Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 17,115 Shares of Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 13.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,965 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 17,115 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $30,359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 764 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC boosted its stake in Ecolab by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 730 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 209 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Oppenheimer raised Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Ecolab from $352.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.56.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,431,170.48. This trade represents a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Darrell R. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.89, for a total value of $2,608,900.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,733 shares in the company, valued at $8,539,712.37. The trade was a 23.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL opened at $279.91 on Friday. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $278.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $273.17. The firm has a market cap of $78.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.57, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.88. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.15 and a 1-year high of $309.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business’s 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 analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders 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 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 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.