15,906 Shares in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Bought by one8zero8 LLC

one8zero8 LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 15,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,727,000. Ecolab accounts for about 0.8% of one8zero8 LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Abound Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 212.5% during the fourth quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $250.87 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $252.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $249.98. The company has a market cap of $71.00 billion, a PE ratio of 33.99, 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. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.05 and a twelve month high of $273.69.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 35.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $263.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 18,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total value of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,911.80. The trade was a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.