Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Holdings Boosted by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 418,285 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,967 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.15% of Ecolab worth $97,013,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Graney & King LLC bought a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 87.9% in the 4th quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 1,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 689 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its position in Ecolab by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 120,464 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,509 shares during the last quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp boosted its stake in Ecolab by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 20,312 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,760,000 after purchasing an additional 1,321 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its position in Ecolab by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 167,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,211,000 after purchasing an additional 3,784 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $252.95 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $255.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $250.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.27, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $217.05 and a 52-week high of $273.69.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total value of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,911.80. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Larry L. Berger sold 10,858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.95, for a total value of $2,898,543.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,744 shares in the company, valued at $4,202,860.80. The trade was a 40.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $270.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $286.88.

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.