Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Given New $300.00 Price Target at Barclays

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its target price raised by Barclays from $260.00 to $300.00 in a report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on ECL. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $306.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Ecolab from $228.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Friday, October 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.87.

Ecolab Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of ECL stock opened at $245.97 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.65 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The business has a 50-day moving average of $252.28 and a 200 day moving average of $244.09. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $182.39 and a 1-year high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share (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 analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. Ecolab’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.54 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,586.40. This trade represents a 32.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the firm’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 trade represents a 1.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 578,355 shares of company stock valued at $142,728,965. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ecolab

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the first quarter valued at about $31,000. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.