Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $97.01 Million Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 4.7% in the fourth 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 buying an additional 18,967 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $97,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Ecolab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $263.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $257.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Argus upgraded Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $286.88.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

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

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $252.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.74 billion, a PE ratio of 34.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $255.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $250.18. 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 12 month low of $217.05 and a 12 month 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 (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 35.23%.

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.