Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Stake Raised by Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 26.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,063 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 644 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Riverwater Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 3.3% in the fourth 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 during the period. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC raised its holdings in Ecolab by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,549 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $704,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,605 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $916,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in Ecolab by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 6,805 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, GS Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. GS Investments Inc. now owns 16,041 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,717,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.2 %

ECL traded up $0.56 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $233.48. The company had a trading volume of 1,131,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,208,968. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.72 and a 52 week high of $234.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $66.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.15, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.50.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released 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 business had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $236.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares in the company, valued at $3,890,528.07. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

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.