M. Kulyk & Associates LLC Purchases Shares of 37,946 Ecolab Inc. $ECL

M. Kulyk & Associates LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 37,946 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,572,000. Ecolab accounts for 1.7% of M. Kulyk & Associates LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,327,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,649,026,000 after buying an additional 137,578 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth $6,422,340,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Ecolab by 63.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,622,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,788,497,000 after buying an additional 4,110,472 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Ecolab by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,883,084 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,069,468,000 after acquiring an additional 441,747 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,635,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,472,599,000 after acquiring an additional 46,569 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on Ecolab from $337.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research cut Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One equities research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $327.56.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $258.00 per share, with a total value of $1,999,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 8,326 shares in the company, valued at $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark purchased 1,000 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $263.83 per share, for a total transaction of $263,830.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $280.36 on Wednesday. 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. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $275.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $273.66. The firm has a market cap of $78.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.63, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 12.57%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS 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 given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

About Ecolab

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.