Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group Decreases Position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group trimmed its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,972 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 461 shares during the period. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ECL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, July 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.29.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $253.37 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s 50-day moving average is $245.81 and its 200 day moving average is $237.51. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $256.59.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. Ecolab’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 42.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at $4,319,446.47. The acquisition was disclosed in a 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 that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at $4,319,446.47. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab 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.