Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Receives Outperform Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $260.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price points to a potential upside of 5.65% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.00.

Ecolab Trading Up 1.5 %

ECL stock traded up $3.53 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $246.10. 212,061 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,147,085. The company has a 50-day moving average of $240.55 and a 200-day moving average of $230.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.50. Ecolab has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $249.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.28 billion, a PE ratio of 45.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.11.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. Analysts predict that Ecolab will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at $4,319,446.47. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in Ecolab by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,884 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $610,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Ecolab by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 16,877 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,354,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Ecolab by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,703 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,123,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the period. Finally, Bailard Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 9,507 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the period. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.