Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) SVP Sells $225,378.96 in Stock

Key Points

• Ecolab Inc. SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares at an average price of $279.28, resulting in a transaction total of $225,378.96, and reducing her ownership by 15.72% to 4,326 shares.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, with an ex-dividend date of September 16th, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.9%.
• Recent earnings showed Ecolab reported $1.89 earnings per share, slightly missing analyst estimates, while the company has a moderated buy rating from analysts and a consensus target price of $291.21.

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total transaction of $225,378.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,326 shares in the company, valued at $1,208,165.28. This trade represents a 15.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL traded up $0.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $280.85. The stock had a trading volume of 1,250,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,312,470. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $221.62 and a 12 month high of $281.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.65 billion, a PE ratio of 37.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $268.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $258.47.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 13.59%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ECL shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W raised Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $295.00 price target (up previously from $293.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 target price on Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $291.21.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,662,213 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,644,987,000 after acquiring an additional 250,980 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,479,529 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,469,019,000 after acquiring an additional 22,986 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Ecolab by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,089,226 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,036,485,000 after acquiring an additional 93,409 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 4.0% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 3,805,952 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $964,885,000 after purchasing an additional 145,902 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Ecolab by 0.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,577,229 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $906,900,000 after purchasing an additional 27,619 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

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.

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