Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Stock Rating Lowered by UBS Group

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at UBS Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $276.00 price objective on the basic materials company's stock. UBS Group's target price indicates a potential upside of 12.88% from the stock's previous close.

ECL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Bank of America raised Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $306.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ecolab from $228.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $277.20.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.0 %

NYSE ECL traded down $0.07 on Monday, hitting $244.50. 1,008,311 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,089,320. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $69.57 billion, a PE ratio of 34.29, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $252.59 and a 200-day moving average of $242.28. Ecolab has a 12 month low of $172.79 and a 12 month high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Ecolab will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 409,136 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.92, for a total value of $101,023,861.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,776,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,599,313,132.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 65,015 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.80, for a total value of $15,850,657.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 30,388,741 shares in the company, valued at $7,408,775,055.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 409,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.92, for a total transaction of $101,023,861.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,776,418 shares in the company, valued at $7,599,313,132.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 478,355 shares of company stock worth $117,922,965. Insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.