Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC

Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC reduced its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 155 shares during the quarter. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,319,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Ecolab by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,149,744 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,658,768,000 after purchasing an additional 105,289 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,181,802 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,317,811,000 after buying an additional 68,043 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Ecolab by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,842,114 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $981,007,000 after buying an additional 35,027 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in Ecolab by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,499,757 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $586,309,000 after buying an additional 83,328 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Ecolab by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,627,017 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $381,552,000 after buying an additional 129,635 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Price Performance

ECL stock opened at $250.79 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The business’s 50-day moving average is $254.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $250.06. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $217.05 and a 1 year high of $273.69.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. Analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total transaction of $2,898,543.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,202,860.80. This trade represents a 40.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Machiel Duijser sold 5,721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.04, for a total value of $1,510,572.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,774 shares in the company, valued at $996,486.96. This trade represents a 60.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup upped their target price on Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $288.00.

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.