Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,383,971 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 19,147 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.49% of Ecolab worth $324,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 45.5% during the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 23,885 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,597,000 after purchasing an additional 7,464 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $3,398,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $3,512,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Summit Global Investments bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,633,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded up $1.07 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $252.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,192,093 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,052,622. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.05 and a twelve month high of $273.69. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $71.55 billion, a PE ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $255.22 and a 200 day moving average of $250.15.

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Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. On average, equities analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab's payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on ECL. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target 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. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $286.88.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total value of $2,898,543.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,744 shares in the company, valued at $4,202,860.80. This represents a 40.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total transaction of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,106,911.80. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock worth $4,637,985. Insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

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.