Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Given New $279.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its target price hoisted by BMO Capital Markets from $260.00 to $279.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.20.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.5 %

Ecolab stock opened at $244.57 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $252.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $241.79. Ecolab has a 52-week low of $167.30 and a 52-week high of $262.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $69.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The business had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ecolab will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total value of $950,196.63. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,586.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,586.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 1st quarter worth $231,000. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Ecolab by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,645 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 694,895 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $160,451,000 after purchasing an additional 48,617 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the first quarter worth approximately $2,997,000. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 8.1% during the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 4,379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,011,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.91% 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.