Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL – Free Report) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 487,875 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 6,324 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. owned approximately 0.17% of Ecolab worth $124,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter worth about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
ECL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $228.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, July 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.20.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Ecolab Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE ECL traded down $1.64 during trading on Thursday, reaching $250.96. 62,353 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,079,020. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.41 billion, a PE ratio of 42.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $241.58. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $159.15 and a 52-week high of $262.61.
Ecolab (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current year.
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.
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