Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lowered its stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,845 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in Ecolab in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Concord Wealth Partners grew its position in shares of Ecolab by 62.0% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 149 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Abound Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 212.5% during the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in Ecolab by 2,188.9% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 206 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In related news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 83,873 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.96, for a total transaction of $20,629,403.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 29,534,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,264,396,133.28. This trade represents a 0.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 360,415 shares of company stock worth $88,350,899 over the last quarter. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL opened at $247.39 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.05 billion, a PE ratio of 34.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $241.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $245.95. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $200.50 and a 52-week high of $262.61.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 17th. This is a boost from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $271.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group cut shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $276.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Ecolab from $306.00 to $294.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays raised their price target on Ecolab from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.60.

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.