Vest Financial LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 227,369 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 5,985 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.08% of Ecolab worth $57,643,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its position in Ecolab by 134.8% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock traded up $0.36 during trading on Friday, reaching $267.29. 606,734 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,166,885. The company has a market capitalization of $75.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50-day moving average is $249.31 and its 200 day moving average is $249.18. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.71 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.33%.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

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 bought at an average price of $251.75 per share, with a total value of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 19,465 shares in the company, valued at $4,900,313.75. This represents a 2.64% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $302.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Citigroup decreased their price target 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. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.13.

Ecolab 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.