Dillon & Associates Inc. Buys 1,208 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

by · The Markets Daily

Dillon & Associates Inc. grew its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL – Free Report) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,182 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,208 shares during the quarter. Ecolab makes up about 1.6% of Dillon & Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Dillon & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $11,521,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the second quarter worth about $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $248.49 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $252.26 and its 200 day moving average is $243.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $70.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.85, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.13. Ecolab Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.16 and a twelve month high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. Ecolab’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.54 EPS. Research analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Ecolab from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Ecolab from $271.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.20.

View Our Latest Research Report on Ecolab

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 65,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.80, for a total value of $15,850,657.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,388,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,408,775,055.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Ecolab news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 65,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.80, for a total transaction of $15,850,657.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,388,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,408,775,055.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total value of $950,196.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,586.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 478,355 shares of company stock worth $117,922,965. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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