Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Avity Investment Management Inc.

Avity Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 3.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 143,683 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,763 shares during the period. Ecolab comprises about 2.9% of Avity Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.05% of Ecolab worth $36,427,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 134.8% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $251.75 per share, with a total value of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,900,313.75. This represents a 2.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:ECL traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $267.29. The stock had a trading volume of 606,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,166,885. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $249.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $249.18. The company has a market cap of $75.81 billion, a PE ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.03.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. Ecolab's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ECL. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Ecolab from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price 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. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 target price on shares of Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.