5 Best Soaps and Cleaning Materials Stocks to Buy

In this article, we discuss the 5 best soaps and cleaning materials stocks to buy. To read the detailed analysis of related industries and current market conditions, go directly to the 10 Best Soaps and Cleaning Materials Stocks to Buy.

5. Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 47

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) offers hygiene, water, and infection prevention solutions and services. The company’s Global Institutional & Specialty, and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences segments provide specialized cleaning and sanitizing products.

On April 12, Mizuho analyst John Roberts upgraded Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) to Buy from Neutral and increased the price target to $260 from $216. The analyst expressed his confidence in the company and commented that the company “appears to be back to its historical beat-and-raise visibility.”

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) takes a spot among the best soaps and cleaning materials stocks to buy. In the fourth quarter of 2023, 47 hedge funds had stakes in the stock, with total positions worth $2.358 billion. As of December 31, 2023, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust is the top shareholder in the company with a stake worth $1.035 billion.

Mairs & Power stated the following regarding Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:

“All of our Materials holdings—Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL), HB Fuller (FUL), and Sherwin Williams (SHW)—also posted strong results in 2023, a stark reversal from the prior year. After oil prices spiked above $100 in 2022 due to the Ukraine-Russia Conflict, oil has since pulled back to the low $70s. Oil and its by-products are major inputs for all of our Materials holdings; as such, lower oil prices have led to a rebound in profits. For example, our largest Materials holding—Ecolab—is expected to increase earnings more than 15% this year after declining 5% last year.”