Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Bought by Integrated Advisors Network LLC

Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,353 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 438 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,020,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 134.8% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $251.75 per share, with a total value of $125,875.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 19,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,900,313.75. This represents a 2.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total value of $2,898,543.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,202,860.80. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Argus upgraded Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.13.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $261.06 on Tuesday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $220.96 and a 1-year high of $273.69. The company has a market capitalization of $74.05 billion, a PE ratio of 35.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $247.15 and a 200-day moving average of $248.22.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. Ecolab’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.33%.

Ecolab 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.