Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV Sells 444 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV lowered its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 4.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,368 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 444 shares during the period. Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter worth $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were 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 directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on ECL shares. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $234.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $271.80.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $259.15 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.50. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.72 and a 52-week high of $262.61. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $250.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $240.15. The firm has a market cap of $74.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.99, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 21.65% and a net margin of 10.95%. Ecolab’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s 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.