Ecolab Inc. $ECL Stock Holdings Boosted by M&G PLC

M&G PLC boosted its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 56.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,048 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,174 shares during the quarter. M&G PLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,663,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $6,422,340,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $244,381,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 51,712 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 206,562 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE ECL opened at $307.51 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $285.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $277.31. The stock has a market cap of $86.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.85. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.15 and a 52-week high of $318.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The basic materials company reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18. Ecolab had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 22.57%. The company had revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.07 earnings per share. Ecolab’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ECL shares. Zacks Research upgraded Ecolab from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on Ecolab from $344.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ecolab from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $328.58.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, CEO Christophe Beck sold 17,862 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.14, for a total transaction of $5,003,860.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Profile

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.