iSAM Funds UK Ltd Has $1.07 Million Stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

iSAM Funds UK Ltd increased its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 93.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,544 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,193 shares during the period. Ecolab comprises about 0.8% of iSAM Funds UK Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. iSAM Funds UK Ltd's holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $261.22 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $246.28 and its 200-day moving average is $247.72. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $220.96 and a 52-week high of $273.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $74.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.40, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.05.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. The business's revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.34 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Ecolab from $277.00 to $273.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $282.47.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $251.75 per share, with a total value of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 19,465 shares in the company, valued at $4,900,313.75. The trade was a 2.64% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total transaction of $228,868.72. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,911.80. This represents a 17.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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