Ecolab Inc. $ECL Stock Holdings Trimmed by AGF Management Ltd.

AGF Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 16.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,811 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 13,473 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $18,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ECL. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in Ecolab by 64.5% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 878,829 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $240,676,000 after acquiring an additional 344,541 shares in the last quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. increased its stake in Ecolab by 25.8% in the 3rd quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 72,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $19,773,000 after buying an additional 14,800 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $18,254,000 after buying an additional 11,322 shares during the period. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ecolab by 162.4% during the 3rd quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 5,364 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 3,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 1.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 597,913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $163,744,000 after acquiring an additional 9,837 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Boo Alexander A. De sold 1,422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.25, for a total transaction of $381,451.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,726 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,999.50. The trade was a 19.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $257.60 per share, for a total transaction of $193,200.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 23,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,933,816. The trade was a 3.37% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.6%

ECL stock opened at $283.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $269.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $270.08. Ecolab Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.62 and a 52-week high of $286.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Ecolab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from Ecolab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Ecolab’s payout ratio is 41.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ECL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ecolab from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets set a $307.00 price objective on Ecolab and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $315.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ecolab from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $265.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $297.33.

About Ecolab

Ecolab, Inc is a global provider of water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services. The company develops and supplies cleaning and sanitizing chemicals, dispensing equipment, water-treatment systems, pest elimination services and related technologies designed to help businesses maintain clean, safe and efficient operations. Its offerings span both products and onsite services, often paired with technical support and training.

Ecolab serves a broad range of end markets including hospitality and foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, manufacturing and industrial operations, and energy and utilities.