Citigroup Raises Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Price Target to $267.00

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Citigroup from $257.00 to $267.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Citigroup’s price target indicates a potential upside of 8.66% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on ECL. Stifel Nicolaus raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $216.00 to $260.00 in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $244.06.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of ECL stock traded up $1.22 during trading on Friday, reaching $245.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 374,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,161,186. Ecolab has a one year low of $156.72 and a one year high of $246.47. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $236.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $221.95. The company has a market cap of $70.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $227.37 per share, for a total transaction of $147,790.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 4,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC now owns 12,221 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,424,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,810 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $557,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 19.1% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 343 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC boosted its stake in Ecolab by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,549 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $704,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.