Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Delta Asset Management LLC TN

Delta Asset Management LLC TN cut its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,173 shares during the quarter. Ecolab makes up approximately 1.6% of Delta Asset Management LLC TN’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Delta Asset Management LLC TN’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $17,256,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Motco acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Ecolab stock traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $233.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 586,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,172,950. The stock has a market cap of $66.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.41. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $156.72 and a twelve month high of $236.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $226.80 and a 200-day moving average of $209.43.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. Ecolab’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 42.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler started coverage on Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Ecolab from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $239.56.

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.