Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Bank of Nova Scotia

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia has cut its stake in Ecolab Inc. by 59.7%, reducing its holdings to 51,209 shares worth approximately $12.98 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Brighton Jones LLC and Aviva PLC, have increased their stakes in Ecolab during the fourth quarter, highlighting a growing interest among institutional investors.
• Ecolab reported earnings of $1.89 per share, slightly missing the consensus estimate, with a revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter.

Bank of Nova Scotia cut its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 59.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 51,209 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 75,867 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Ecolab were worth $12,983,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 70.6% during the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Baird R W raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $273.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $290.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 purchase, the director directly owned 19,465 shares in the company, valued at $4,900,313.75. The trade was a 2.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Ecolab stock traded up $3.05 during trading on Monday, reaching $264.06. The company had a trading volume of 716,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,185,174. The company has a market cap of $74.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's fifty day moving average is $266.82 and its 200-day moving average is $256.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.44. Ecolab Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.62 and a fifty-two week high of $274.17.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 22.52%. On average, analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is 34.71%.

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.