Vest Financial LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Vest Financial LLC decreased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 0.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 198,469 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 493 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.07% of Ecolab worth $50,675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 84.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 13,415 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,098,000 after purchasing an additional 6,137 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 50.9% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in Ecolab by 19.1% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 21,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,895,000 after purchasing an additional 3,393 shares during the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ecolab during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,194,000. Finally, Chemung Canal Trust Co. lifted its position in Ecolab by 46.8% during the first quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 30,113 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,953,000 after purchasing an additional 9,601 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.7 %

Ecolab stock traded up $4.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $261.46. 1,017,240 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,088,555. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $250.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $239.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.13. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.72 and a 52-week high of $262.61.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $234.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $271.80.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related 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 value of $98,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the company’s 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 owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,586.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.