Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV Sells 163 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV reduced its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 27,174 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the quarter. Ecolab accounts for about 0.8% of Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $6,467,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ecolab by 1.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,486,858 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,423,116,000 after purchasing an additional 304,402 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,264,757 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $449,215,000 after acquiring an additional 91,547 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $365,420,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at about $390,687,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,343,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $266,392,000 after purchasing an additional 18,687 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of Ecolab stock traded up $3.09 on Friday, hitting $253.18. 1,448,479 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,134,807. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.72 and a 12-month high of $253.54. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $241.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $232.44. The company has a market cap of $72.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 21.65% and a net margin of 10.95%. The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ECL. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, July 8th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $250.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,319,446.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total transaction of $950,196.63. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,586.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,319,446.47. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

About Ecolab

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.