Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Stock Position Lifted by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 76,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $17,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its position in Ecolab by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 100,854 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,632,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. SRN Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth approximately $935,000. National Pension Service grew its position in Ecolab by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 766,794 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $179,675,000 after acquiring an additional 50,576 shares in the last quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $505,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cavalier Investments LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Cavalier Investments LLC now owns 3,724 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $873,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total transaction of $1,510,572.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,774 shares in the company, valued at $996,486.96. The trade was a 60.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,767 shares in the company, valued at $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Ecolab stock opened at $266.60 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $248.29. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $217.05 and a 12-month high of $268.15.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. Research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on ECL. Argus raised shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $271.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $279.00 to $290.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.00.

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.