Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,851 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 435 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ECL. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 150.0% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE ECL opened at $229.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.46 billion, a PE ratio of 42.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $156.72 and a 1-year high of $231.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $224.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $203.99.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its 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. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised shares of Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Bank of America upgraded Ecolab from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $216.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ecolab from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Ecolab from $227.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.88.

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.