Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Purchased by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 34.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,287 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Haven Capital Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,970,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,550 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $597,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,927 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 295.5% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 136,731 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $32,039,000 after purchasing an additional 102,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased 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 purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

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Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock traded up $1.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $252.27. The stock had a trading volume of 1,192,093 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,052,309. The company has a market cap of $71.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $217.05 and a 12-month high of $273.69. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $255.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $250.15.

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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus raised shares of Ecolab to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $263.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $286.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.