Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $267.56 and last traded at $264.07, with a volume of 331716 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $245.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on ECL. UBS Group raised their price target on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Ecolab from $305.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $279.00 to $290.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.33.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $242.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $246.20. The firm has a market cap of $74.29 billion, a PE ratio of 36.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.14.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.81. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.12% and a net margin of 13.05%. Analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. This is a boost from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 36.47%.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 106,542 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.21, for a total value of $25,698,995.82. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,348,741 shares in the company, valued at $7,079,209,816.61. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 260,415 shares of company stock worth $63,544,899. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at $330,000. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 4.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 40,209 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,267,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 2.3% during the third quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,778 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 2,188.9% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 206 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 6.3% in the third quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,852 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $473,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% 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.