AE Wealth Management LLC Has $1.21 Million Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 61.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,081 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares during the quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $1,209,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought 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 during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter worth $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $254.26 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $244.78 and its 200-day moving average is $236.45. 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 company has a market capitalization of $72.61 billion, a PE ratio of 47.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.13. Ecolab Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.72 and a 12-month high of $255.99.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ECL. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ecolab from $260.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.21.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $98,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,586.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.