Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Acquired by Congress Asset Management Co.

Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 497,638 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,763 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned 0.18% of Ecolab worth $116,606,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter worth $26,000. Concord Wealth Partners raised its holdings in Ecolab by 62.0% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 149 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the third quarter worth $40,000. Abound Wealth Management raised 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 purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth $47,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE ECL traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $266.07. 847,276 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,251,343. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26. The business's 50 day moving average is $243.66 and its 200-day moving average is $247.06. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $213.94 and a 12-month high of $268.00.

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

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. This is a positive change from Ecolab's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.95, for a total value of $17,216,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,178,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,176,511,348.95. This trade represents a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 18,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,964,059.17. This represents a 2.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Ecolab from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $279.00 to $290.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $263.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $284.33.

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.