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Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. Takes Position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Ecolab logo with Basic Materials background

Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,593 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $917,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 27,950.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 738,567 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $188,578,000 after buying an additional 735,934 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 295.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 791,246 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $188,317,000 after buying an additional 591,040 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 580.7% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 303,565 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $72,248,000 after buying an additional 258,971 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 136.0% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 359,106 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $85,467,000 after acquiring an additional 206,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Ecolab by 87.0% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 333,511 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $79,376,000 after acquiring an additional 155,168 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 409,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,776,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,599,313,132.56. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,010,250. This trade represents a 1.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 834,959 shares of company stock worth $205,323,667. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on Ecolab from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $306.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $279.87.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on ECL

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock traded up $2.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $250.31. 931,508 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,086,395. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $189.58 and a 52-week high of $262.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $250.89 and a 200 day moving average of $245.23. The company has a market cap of $70.88 billion, a PE ratio of 35.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.12% and a net margin of 13.05%. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.54 earnings per share. Ecolab's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. This is a boost from Ecolab's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. Ecolab's payout ratio is presently 31.98%.

About Ecolab

(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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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Ecolab (NYSE:ECL)

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