Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,580,000 shares, an increase of 33.0% from the March 15th total of 1,940,000 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,440,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total value of $1,510,572.84. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $521,399,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 27,182.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,813,175 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $459,676,000 after buying an additional 1,806,529 shares in the last quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 98.6% in the 4th quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 1,427,083 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $334,394,000 after acquiring an additional 708,432 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in Ecolab by 206.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 767,108 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $179,749,000 after purchasing an additional 516,970 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Ecolab by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,129,058 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $733,201,000 after acquiring an additional 514,944 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.8 %

ECL traded up $1.94 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $239.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,030,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,151,410. The firm has a market cap of $68.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.51, a PEG 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. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $251.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $248.28. Ecolab has a 52-week low of $218.19 and a 52-week high of $273.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ECL shares. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $277.00 target price on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $282.33.

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.