Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) PT Raised to $233.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $225.00 to $233.00 in a research note released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on ECL. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and boosted their price target for the company from $185.00 to $216.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Barclays upgraded Ecolab from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Ecolab in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a peer perform rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $211.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $233.65.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $224.98 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $224.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $202.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.41. Ecolab has a 52-week low of $156.72 and a 52-week high of $231.86. The stock has a market cap of $64.32 billion, a PE ratio of 41.66, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.08.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced 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 business had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Ecolab will post 6.49 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 19th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 1.1% in the first quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 4,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,424,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 1,654 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,810 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $557,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 19.1% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.