IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Has $2.23 Million Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd trimmed its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 116 shares during the period. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $2,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of ECL stock opened at $259.77 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.13. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $261.54. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $249.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $239.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ECL. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ecolab from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.07.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $98,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.