Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Bought by Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 78.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $87,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the first quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 409,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.92, for a total value of $101,023,861.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,776,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,599,313,132.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Ecolab news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 409,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.92, for a total value of $101,023,861.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,776,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,599,313,132.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 478,355 shares of company stock valued at $117,922,965 over the last 90 days. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Stock Down 0.9 %

Ecolab stock opened at $244.72 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $252.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $242.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.30. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $172.79 and a one year high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $271.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.20.

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.