Ecolab Inc. $ECL Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 11,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,152 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $3,287,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,422,340,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Ecolab by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,617,425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,007,851,000 after buying an additional 51,712 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in Ecolab by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,708,147 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $743,726,000 after buying an additional 206,562 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Ecolab by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,412,057 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $641,609,000 after acquiring an additional 88,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Ecolab by 58.8% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,243,825 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $596,902,000 after acquiring an additional 830,726 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total value of $5,003,860.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,431,170.48. The trade was a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $308.12 per share, for a total transaction of $184,872.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 26,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,080,447. The trade was a 2.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL stock traded up $4.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $309.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,208,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,711,678. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $286.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $277.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.15 and a 1 year high of $318.93. The stock has a market cap of $86.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.04, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.85.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The basic materials company reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.57% and a net margin of 11.99%. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

Top Ecolab Stories

Investors following ECL have been watching these stories:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo upgraded Ecolab from Equal Weight to Overweight and raised its price target to $380 from $315—about 23% above the cited share price. The firm highlighted the CoolIT and Ovivo acquisitions and potential to benefit from AI data-center cooling needs. This water technology stock is set to get a big boost from AI, says Wells Fargo Ecolab upgraded at Wells Fargo, touting CoolIT and Ovivo acquisitions
• Positive Sentiment: Director David Maclennan bought 600 shares for roughly $184,900 at an average price of $308.12, increasing his holdings by 2.34%. Insider buying can signal confidence in the company’s prospects. Ecolab Director David Maclennan Acquires 600 Shares

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ECL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price target on shares of Ecolab and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $344.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $287.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $380.00 in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ecolab has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $332.00.

About Ecolab

Ecolab Inc. provides water, hygiene, cleaning and infection-prevention products and services to businesses and institutions. Its solutions help customers manage water use, maintain sanitary environments and support operational efficiency. The company serves a range of industries, including food and beverage, foodservice, hospitality, healthcare, life sciences and manufacturing. Its offerings include cleaning and sanitizing products, water-treatment programs, pest-elimination services, and related monitoring and consulting support.