Cibc World Markets Corp Purchases 73,913 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Cibc World Markets Corp raised its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 527.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 87,915 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,913 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $17,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Motco bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on ECL. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $216.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $239.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total transaction of $1,023,840.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 17,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total transaction of $1,023,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE ECL traded up $3.67 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $239.19. 1,382,903 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,165,986. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.72 and a 12-month high of $239.66. 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 50-day moving average price of $227.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.31. The firm has a market cap of $68.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.12.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. The business had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Ecolab’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors 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 yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

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.