Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Lowered to Neutral Rating by UBS Group

UBS Group cut shares of Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $276.00 target price on the basic materials company’s stock.

ECL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $233.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, July 8th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $306.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.20.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $246.29 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.74 billion, a PE ratio of 34.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.13. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $174.08 and a 1-year high of $262.61. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $252.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $242.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.01. The company 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.54 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ecolab will post 6.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total transaction of $950,196.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,586.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,010,250. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total transaction of $950,196.63. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,586.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 478,355 shares of company stock worth $117,922,965. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caprock Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 7,166 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,834,000 after buying an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 1.9% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 56,877 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,529,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ecolab by 29.4% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,137 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 1.6% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 5,474 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. W. Coons Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 4,244 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,084,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.