Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by YHB Investment Advisors Inc.

YHB Investment Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 75,367 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 443 shares during the period. Ecolab makes up 1.6% of YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $19,243,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position 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 buying an additional 304,402 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Ecolab by 5.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,558,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $608,851,000 after buying an additional 122,715 shares in the last quarter. Mirova US LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 2.3% during the second quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 1,975,415 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $470,149,000 after buying an additional 43,553 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Ecolab during the first quarter valued at approximately $390,687,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Ecolab by 1.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,372,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $326,626,000 after buying an additional 24,648 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $234.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.80.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

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

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2 %

ECL stock opened at $258.72 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Ecolab Inc. has a 1-year low of $156.72 and a 1-year high of $262.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $251.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $240.49. The firm has a market cap of $73.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.91, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

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

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.