Seaport Research Partners has elevated its recommendation for Innospec (IOSP) from Neutral to Buy, setting a price target of $115. This upgrade comes as part of the firm's detailed analysis of 18 companies in its chemicals sector coverage, which are set to announce their earnings soon.
In addition to Innospec, the firm also upgraded its stance on Ecolab (ECL, Financial) to Buy, establishing a target price of $290. These changes reflect Seaport Research's anticipation of earnings trends and valuation considerations within the chemicals industry.
The research firm expressed concerns over the broader impact of tariffs on consumer confidence and macroeconomic demand, particularly regarding U.S. companies. Despite these apprehensions, the firm is less worried about the effect of tariffs on input costs, though it does foresee some inflationary pressures.
A noted decline in the U.S. dollar offers a counterbalance to Seaport Research's otherwise cautious outlook, while valuations within the chemical sector remain close to multi-year lows, according to their analysis.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast
Based on the one-year price targets offered by 19 analysts, the average target price for Ecolab Inc (ECL, Financial) is $276.42 with a high estimate of $310.00 and a low estimate of $232.96. The average target implies an upside of 15.79% from the current price of $238.73. More detailed estimate data can be found on the Ecolab Inc (ECL) Forecast page.
Based on the consensus recommendation from 27 brokerage firms, Ecolab Inc's (ECL, Financial) average brokerage recommendation is currently 2.3, indicating "Outperform" status. The rating scale ranges from 1 to 5, where 1 signifies Strong Buy, and 5 denotes Sell.
Based on GuruFocus estimates, the estimated GF Value for Ecolab Inc (ECL, Financial) in one year is $208.79, suggesting a downside of 12.54% from the current price of $238.73. GF Value is GuruFocus' estimate of the fair value that the stock should be traded at. It is calculated based on the historical multiples the stock has traded at previously, as well as past business growth and the future estimates of the business' performance. More detailed data can be found on the Ecolab Inc (ECL) Summary page.
