Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lowered its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,660,050 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 182,064 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 1.29% of Ecolab worth $857,623,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Invesco LLC lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Ecolab by 5.1% during 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 in the last quarter. World Equity Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $726,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target 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. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $282.47.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $261.22 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $74.09 billion, a PE ratio of 35.40, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.05. 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 1 year low of $220.96 and a 1 year high of $273.69. The company's 50-day moving average is $246.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $247.72.

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, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total value of $2,898,543.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,744 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,202,860.80. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the business'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 acquisition, the director now owns 19,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,900,313.75. This represents 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 currently owned by company 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.

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