Prudential PLC Sells 972 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC has reduced its stake in Ecolab Inc. by 0.9%, now owning approximately $27.35 million worth of shares following the sale of 972 shares in the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds have significantly increased their positions in Ecolab, with GAMMA Investing LLC boosting its holdings by over 27,000% to own 1.81 million shares valued at $459.68 million.
• Ecolab has received multiple analyst upgrades recently, with UBS Group upgrading the stock to a "buy" rating and a consensus rating of "buy" with an average target price of $290.71.

Prudential PLC lowered its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 107,879 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 972 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Ecolab were worth $27,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.8% in the first quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,449 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $755,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 5.0% in the first quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 902 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.0% in the first quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 2,199 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.8% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,774 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $703,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $278.51 per share, with a total value of $167,106.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,253 shares in the company, valued at $5,640,663.03. The trade was a 3.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total transaction of $225,378.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,165.28. This represents a 15.72% 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 company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Ecolab to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $273.00 to $300.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $295.00 target price (up previously from $293.00) on shares of Ecolab in a report on Thursday. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Ecolab from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $291.21.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL traded up $0.87 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $280.85. The company had a trading volume of 1,250,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,181,101. The firm has a market cap of $79.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.50, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average of $268.43 and a 200-day moving average of $258.68. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $221.62 and a 12 month high of $281.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 13.59% and a return on equity of 22.52%. Equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Ecolab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.71%.

Ecolab Company 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.