Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $239.56.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ecolab from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Ecolab from $227.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Ecolab from $269.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $235.00 on Wednesday. Ecolab has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $236.00. The company has a market cap of $67.11 billion, a PE ratio of 43.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $226.80 and its 200 day moving average is $209.43.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. Ecolab’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.22%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,812,680.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $227.37 per share, for a total transaction of $147,790.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 17,111 shares in the company, valued at $3,890,528.07. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director now owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $598,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 26.4% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 87,131 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,760,000 after purchasing an additional 18,203 shares in the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 6,892 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 12,880 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,182,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GS Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. GS Investments Inc. now owns 16,041 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,717,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.