Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Acquired by Capital International Investors

Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 743,442 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 1,373 shares during the quarter. Capital International Investors owned about 0.26% of Ecolab worth $174,203,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 134.8% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total transaction of $1,510,572.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,774 shares in the company, valued at $996,486.96. This trade represents a 60.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 18,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,964,059.17. The trade was a 2.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lowered their price target on Ecolab from $302.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $240.00 price objective (down previously from $265.00) on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $282.33.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL traded up $1.19 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $238.00. 1,093,641 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,148,402. The company has a market capitalization of $67.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $218.19 and a 1 year high of $273.69. The business's 50 day moving average price is $252.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.35.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.23%.

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.