AMI Asset Management Corp Buys Shares of 113,034 Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

AMI Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 113,034 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $28,656,000. Ecolab accounts for approximately 1.7% of AMI Asset Management Corp's holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ECL. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in Ecolab by 134.8% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Ecolab by 176.7% during the 1st quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC bought a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price target on Ecolab and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Five equities research 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $283.13.

Ecolab Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded down $2.86 during trading on Thursday, hitting $263.60. 1,675,458 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,167,090. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $74.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.81, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $256.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $250.95. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $220.96 and a 1-year high of $273.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.71 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.41% and a return on equity of 22.53%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.33%.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $251.75 per share, for a total transaction of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 19,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,900,313.75. This represents a 2.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.