Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $24.32 Million Stock Position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 1.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 105,317 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,872 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $24,318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cardinal Capital Management raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 6.7% in the first quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 40,910 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,468,000 after purchasing an additional 2,572 shares during the period. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 10.9% in the first quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 3,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $719,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the first quarter valued at approximately $231,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 4,840.0% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 247 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the 1st quarter worth approximately $326,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $239.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $232.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.39 billion, a PE ratio of 44.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.12. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $156.72 and a 12 month high of $245.93.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $269.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Mizuho raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $216.00 to $260.00 in a report on Friday, April 12th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $239.56.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the firm’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 directly owns 25,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.