Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC trimmed its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 142,793 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,057 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.05% of Ecolab worth $34,373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. PFW Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $1,262,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in Ecolab by 797.3% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,820 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,550,000 after purchasing an additional 15,834 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,627,017 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $381,552,000 after purchasing an additional 129,635 shares during the last quarter. Corundum Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 47.9% in the 4th quarter. Corundum Group Inc. now owns 7,548 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,769,000 after purchasing an additional 2,444 shares during the period. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $246,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of Ecolab stock traded up $3.55 on Monday, reaching $238.87. The stock had a trading volume of 156,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,143,783. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $67.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $254.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $249.11. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $217.05 and a 1 year high of $273.69.

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Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting 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 forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on ECL. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $263.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $285.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $264.51 per share, for a total transaction of $105,804.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 18,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total transaction of $2,898,543.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,744 shares in the company, valued at $4,202,860.80. The trade was a 40.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Ecolab

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.