Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Insider Buying Activity

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $232.52 and last traded at $232.45, with a volume of 368525 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $228.95.

Specifically, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $227.37 per share, for a total transaction of $147,790.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,890,528.07. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ECL. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ecolab from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $185.00 to $216.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Barclays raised Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ecolab from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.88.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.41. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $225.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $204.50. The company has a market cap of $66.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.15, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.58 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecolab

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ecolab by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 4,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Peak Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,424,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 1,654 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC lifted its stake in Ecolab by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,810 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Ecolab by 19.1% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

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.