Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $267.56 and last traded at $264.07, with a volume of 331716 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $245.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $271.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group cut Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $276.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $279.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.60.

Ecolab Stock Up 8.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $241.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $245.97. The company has a market cap of $75.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.14.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. This is a positive change from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.95, for a total value of $17,216,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,178,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,176,511,348.95. This trade represents a 0.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 360,415 shares of company stock worth $88,350,899 in the last ninety days. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Ecolab by 134.8% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Concord Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Ecolab by 62.0% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 149 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.