Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Advisory Services Network LLC

Advisory Services Network LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,632 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 462 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,917,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ECL. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Motco acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 2,042.9% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Ecolab from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total transaction of $1,023,840.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,548 shares in the company, valued at $5,812,680.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total transaction of $1,023,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of ECL stock traded up $0.76 on Friday, reaching $245.26. 149,846 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,159,500. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $70.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $236.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $221.95. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $156.72 and a 1-year high of $246.47.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.58 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

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.