Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. Sells 1,000 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. trimmed its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 48,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Ecolab accounts for approximately 1.8% of Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $11,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 3.1% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,904 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $997,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab by 6.0% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,672 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 9,324 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,383,000 after buying an additional 1,181 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 8,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,043,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 9,501 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,426,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $250.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $71.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $254.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $250.03. Ecolab Inc. has a 52 week low of $217.05 and a 52 week high of $273.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.81. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. On average, equities analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $263.00 to $280.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group increased their target price on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total value of $1,510,572.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $996,486.96. This trade represents a 60.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $264.51 per share, for a total transaction of $105,804.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,964,059.17. The trade was a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.