Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by First Western Trust Bank

First Western Trust Bank reduced its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,542 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,701 shares during the period. Ecolab accounts for about 0.3% of First Western Trust Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. First Western Trust Bank’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $6,317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ECL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ecolab by 1.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,486,858 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,423,116,000 after acquiring an additional 304,402 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its stake in Ecolab by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,264,757 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $449,215,000 after purchasing an additional 91,547 shares during the last quarter. Mirova US LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 1,975,415 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $470,149,000 after purchasing an additional 43,553 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $365,420,000. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter worth about $390,687,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total value of $950,196.63. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,586.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total value of $950,196.63. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,014,586.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock opened at $246.75 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $242.08 and a 200-day moving average of $233.65. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.72 and a 52-week high of $253.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.69, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group decreased their price target on Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, July 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.67.

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.