Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 141,761 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,821 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $33,739,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ECL. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total value of $950,196.63. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,586.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $240.41 per share, for a total transaction of $156,266.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 17,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,319,446.47. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.6 %

Ecolab stock opened at $250.79 on Wednesday. Ecolab Inc. has a one year low of $156.72 and a one year high of $253.54. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $242.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $71.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.44, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.13.

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

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ECL. Citigroup raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Ecolab from $243.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ecolab to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America raised shares of Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Ecolab from $288.00 to $276.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.67.

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.