Mutual of America Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,215 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 996 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $7,549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,356 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $602,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,262,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Ecolab by 797.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,820 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,550,000 after buying an additional 15,834 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Ecolab by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,627,017 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $381,552,000 after buying an additional 129,635 shares during the period. Finally, Corundum Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ecolab by 47.9% during the 4th quarter. Corundum Group Inc. now owns 7,548 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,769,000 after acquiring an additional 2,444 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity at Ecolab
In related news, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $996,486.96. This trade represents a 60.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total value of $228,868.72. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,911.80. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Ecolab Stock Up 0.8 %
ECL stock traded up $2.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $269.87. 1,513,115 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,274,555. 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's fifty day moving average price is $248.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $249.15. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $217.05 and a 52 week high of $273.69. The company has a market cap of $76.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14.
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, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Ecolab Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.23%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
ECL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $263.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group upped their price target on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on Ecolab from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $288.00.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Ecolab
Ecolab Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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