Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. Acquires 1,914 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Key Points

• Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. has increased its stake in Ecolab Inc. by 3.6%, making the company its 10th largest position, with holdings valued at approximately $14.28 million.
• Ecolab recently reported quarterly earnings per share of $1.50, matching consensus estimates, with revenue of $3.70 billion, slightly below expectations.
$0.65 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 0.96%.

Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. increased its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 3.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,732 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 1,914 shares during the period. Ecolab comprises about 4.2% of Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd.'s holdings in Ecolab were worth $14,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in Ecolab by 176.7% during the first quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE ECL traded down $12.42 on Tuesday, reaching $257.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,101,663 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,323,414. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $220.96 and a twelve month high of $274.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $73.06 billion, a PE ratio of 34.98, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.03. The firm's 50 day moving average is $266.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.02.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.53% and a net margin of 13.41%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were issued 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 1.01%. Ecolab's payout ratio is presently 35.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $271.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $288.33.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the business's 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 acquisition, the director owned 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 the SEC website. Insiders own 0.04% 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.