Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Issues Q2 Earnings Guidance

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) issued an update on its second quarter earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of $1.62-1.72 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $1.54. Ecolab also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 6.400-6.700 EPS.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock traded up $1.59 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $226.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 413,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,205,709. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $224.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $202.37. The company has a market capitalization of $64.78 billion, a PE ratio of 41.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.08. Ecolab has a 12 month low of $156.72 and a 12 month high of $231.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. Ecolab’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ECL shares. Seaport Res Ptn cut Ecolab from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays raised Ecolab from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and lifted their target price for the company from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Ecolab from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Ecolab from $211.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $233.65.

Ecolab Company Profile

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.