Norinchukin Bank The Grows Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Norinchukin Bank The raised its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,381 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,930 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The's holdings in Ecolab were worth $4,307,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Invesco LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 1,067 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 859 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. World Equity Group Inc. raised its stake in Ecolab by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $726,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ECL shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $282.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In related news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,911.80. This represents a 17.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,202,860.80. The trade was a 40.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock worth $4,637,985. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL traded up $1.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $238.00. 1,093,641 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,150,127. The business's 50-day moving average price is $252.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $248.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.50 billion, a PE ratio of 32.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $218.19 and a 1-year high of $273.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab's payout ratio is 35.23%.

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.