Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Issues FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) updated its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Tuesday. The company provided EPS guidance of 6.600-6.700 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 6.640. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Ecolab also updated its Q4 guidance to $1.75-1.85 EPS.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL traded down $3.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $252.85. 404,808 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,077,519. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.95 billion, a PE ratio of 43.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $252.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $241.28. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $157.59 and a 1-year high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,319,446.47. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $98,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,319,446.47. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.