Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Reaches New 12-Month High on Insider Buying Activity

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday following insider buying activity. The stock 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 acquired 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $227.37 per share, for a total transaction of $147,790.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Ecolab from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Seaport Res Ptn cut Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Ecolab in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $236.88.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.8 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $203.99. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $66.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.58 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Motco purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2,042.9% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Company 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.