Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Sells 5,037 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co trimmed its position in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 22.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,650 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,037 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $4,136,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 206.7% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 767,108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $179,749,000 after purchasing an additional 516,970 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $80,564,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Ecolab by 50.2% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 886,653 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $207,758,000 after acquiring an additional 296,344 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $61,073,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $39,204,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total transaction of $228,868.72. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,911.80. This represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 18,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock worth $4,637,985. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $252.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $217.05 and a 1-year high of $273.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $255.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $250.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.74 billion, a PE ratio of 34.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is 35.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on ECL shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Argus raised shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $286.88.

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.