Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

ECL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus raised shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Ecolab from $285.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.00.

Ecolab Stock Performance

ECL opened at $250.79 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.98, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a fifty day moving average of $254.48 and a 200 day moving average of $250.03. Ecolab has a fifty-two week low of $217.05 and a fifty-two week high of $273.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The basic materials company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.81. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 22.50%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ecolab will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan purchased 400 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $264.51 per share, for a total transaction of $105,804.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 18,767 shares in the company, valued at $4,964,059.17. This trade represents a 2.18 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 856 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $267.37, for a total transaction of $228,868.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,106,911.80. This represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,435 shares of company stock worth $4,637,985 in the last 90 days. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 134.8% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

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.