Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Acquires 806 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,079 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 806 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $8,111,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $6,010,250. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $240.41 per share, with a total value of $156,266.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $6,010,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

NYSE:ECL opened at $251.21 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $156.72 and a one year high of $253.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market cap of $71.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.52, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $244.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.67.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 17th. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 42.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ECL shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $233.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, July 8th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ecolab from $225.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Six 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $257.73.

Ecolab 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.