Robeco Schweiz AG Cuts Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Robeco Schweiz AG lessened its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 21.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 268,028 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 74,505 shares during the period. Ecolab makes up about 1.3% of Robeco Schweiz AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Robeco Schweiz AG owned about 0.09% of Ecolab worth $62,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. SRN Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $935,000. National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 766,794 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $179,675,000 after acquiring an additional 50,576 shares during the period. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Cavalier Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Cavalier Investments LLC now owns 3,724 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $873,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Finally, FFT Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. FFT Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $504,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:ECL opened at $266.60 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $246.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $248.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.49 billion, a PE ratio of 36.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $217.05 and a 12 month high of $268.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus upgraded shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total value of $1,510,572.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $996,486.96. The trade was a 60.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.