Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Boosts Stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its ownership in Ecolab Inc. by 3.0%, holding 123,280 shares valued at approximately $31.25 million.
• Ecolab reported a quarterly EPS of $1.89, slightly missing analysts' expectations, while revenues for the quarter matched estimates at $4.03 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65, representing an annualized yield of 1.0% with a payout ratio of 34.71%.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 123,280 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,580 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $31,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 176.7% in the first quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 70.6% in the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the first quarter worth $38,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ECL. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price objective on Ecolab and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $290.71.

Ecolab Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE ECL traded up $3.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $272.83. The company had a trading volume of 833,178 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,143,075. The company has a market capitalization of $77.38 billion, a PE ratio of 36.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.06. 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $267.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $257.29. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $221.62 and a 1-year high of $274.17.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 13.59%. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.