USA Financial Formulas Raises Stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

USA Financial Formulas boosted its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) by 628.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 10,256 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,848 shares during the quarter. USA Financial Formulas' holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,034,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on ECL. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Ecolab from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Mizuho raised Ecolab from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $216.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Ecolab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $236.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded down $1.77 during trading on Monday, reaching $231.75. 1,426,466 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,204,449. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.72 and a 52 week high of $234.68. The company's 50 day moving average is $225.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.18 billion, a PE ratio of 42.92, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The company's revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Ecolab's payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

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.