Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Cuts Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Key Points

• Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. has reduced its stake in Ecolab Inc. by 8.8%, selling 30,376 shares and currently holding 313,315 shares, which accounts for 1.9% of its investment portfolio.
• Several other institutional investors have recently adjusted their positions in Ecolab, with Norden Group LLC increasing its holdings by 54.4% and Mackenzie Financial Corp lifting theirs by 65.2% in the first quarter of the year.
• Ecolab's quarterly earnings report showed a net margin of 13.41% and revenue of $3.70 billion, slightly below analysts' expectations, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. lowered its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 313,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 30,376 shares during the quarter. Ecolab makes up approximately 1.9% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. owned approximately 0.11% of Ecolab worth $79,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 27,182.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,813,175 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $459,676,000 after acquiring an additional 1,806,529 shares during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in Ecolab by 27,677.8% during the first quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 1,000,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $253,520,000 after purchasing an additional 996,400 shares during the period. Winslow Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 98.6% during the fourth quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 1,427,083 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $334,394,000 after purchasing an additional 708,432 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 79.6% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,260,813 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $319,641,000 after purchasing an additional 558,947 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,129,058 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $733,201,000 after buying an additional 514,944 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of ECL stock traded down $10.25 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $259.74. 2,264,825 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 997,161. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $220.96 and a 12 month high of $274.17. The stock has a market cap of $73.67 billion, a PE ratio of 39.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.03. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $266.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $256.02.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.41% and a return on equity of 22.53%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 17th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $251.75 per share, for a total transaction of $125,875.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 19,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,900,313.75. This trade represents a 2.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Ecolab from $307.00 to $303.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. 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 research report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $271.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Ecolab from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price target on Ecolab and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $288.33.

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.