Diversify Advisory Services LLC Purchases New Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,125 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $577,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 164.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $867,000 after buying an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 39.8% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $373,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 22.9% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 1,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,684,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 49.4% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,741,000 after acquiring an additional 19,324 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris purchased 7,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This represents a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $263.83 per share, with a total value of $263,830.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. This represents a 1,204.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 28,866 shares of company stock valued at $7,878,801. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $280.73 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.68, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50-day moving average of $276.23 and a 200-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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research cut Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer upgraded Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.56.

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.