Rafferty Asset Management LLC Buys 2,330 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,876 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,330 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $5,126,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Invesco LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 1,067 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 859 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $201,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. World Equity Group Inc. boosted its position in Ecolab by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $726,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.6%

ECL stock traded down $1.59 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $260.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,200,034 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,166,349. The firm's 50-day moving average is $246.51 and its 200-day moving average is $247.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $220.96 and a 12 month high of $273.69. The company has a market cap of $73.97 billion, a PE ratio of 35.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.05.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ECL. Argus upgraded Ecolab to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $263.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. 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, Ecolab presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.13.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total value of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,106,911.80. The trade was a 17.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was 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 now owns 19,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,900,313.75. The trade was a 2.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.