Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Position Raised by Bridges Investment Management Inc.

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 74.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,622 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,547 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $862,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 217.5% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 162,862 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,761,000 after purchasing an additional 111,564 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in Ecolab by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 37,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $8,840,000 after buying an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Trust Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its position in Ecolab by 11.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 10,117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,408,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.0% in the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 8,164 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,943,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ecolab from $260.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,010,250. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,010,250. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought 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 approximately $4,319,446.47. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $251.44 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $253.57. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $244.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.85. The company has a market cap of $71.80 billion, a PE ratio of 46.56, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The business had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 42.22%.

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.