Mirova Raises Position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Mirova increased its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 164,556 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 9,913 shares during the period. Ecolab accounts for about 6.7% of Mirova’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Mirova’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $38,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Ecolab by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 76,214 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,858,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. Natixis lifted its position in Ecolab by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Natixis now owns 47,174 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $11,054,000 after purchasing an additional 2,567 shares during the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The grew its stake in shares of Ecolab by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 18,381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,307,000 after buying an additional 2,930 shares in the last quarter. Ossiam increased its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Ossiam now owns 22,112 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,181,000 after buying an additional 2,298 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 102.3% during the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 90,219 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,140,000 after buying an additional 45,619 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus upgraded Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $302.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $282.33.

Ecolab Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL opened at $238.51 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $253.24 and its 200 day moving average is $248.58. The stock has a market cap of $67.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $217.27 and a 52-week high of $273.69. 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 (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, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81. Ecolab had a return on equity of 22.50% and a net margin of 13.42%. Sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $264.51 per share, with a total value of $105,804.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,767 shares in the company, valued at $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total transaction of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,911.80. This represents a 17.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 17,435 shares of company stock valued at $4,637,985. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Company Profile

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.