Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Decreases Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC cut its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 16,919 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 68 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for about 1.0% of Northwest Investment Counselors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $4,320,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL stock traded down $2.21 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $259.25. The company had a trading volume of 262,361 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,084,485. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $250.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $239.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $156.72 and a one year high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.01. The firm 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%. Ecolab’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Ecolab from $234.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target 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 raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $271.80.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

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

About Ecolab

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.