Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Hits New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on the stock from $260.00 to $306.00. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Ecolab traded as high as $253.57 and last traded at $253.35, with a volume of 559755 shares. The stock had previously closed at $250.54.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $267.00 to $265.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group cut their target price on Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Six 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at $4,319,446.47. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,010,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the second quarter worth $27,000. Motco acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the first quarter valued at $31,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.1 %

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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $243.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $235.09. The firm has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a PE ratio of 46.75, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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