Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,900,000 shares, an increase of 8.0% from the October 31st total of 1,760,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 978,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days. Currently, 0.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Ecolab Stock Up 0.2 %

ECL traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $248.79. 249,579 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,086,269. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $251.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $245.19. Ecolab has a 1 year low of $188.80 and a 1 year high of $262.61.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 13.05% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ecolab will post 6.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ecolab news, major shareholder William H. Gates III sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.95, for a total transaction of $17,216,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,178,741 shares in the company, valued at $7,176,511,348.95. This represents a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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 in the company, valued at approximately $6,010,250. The trade was a 1.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 834,959 shares of company stock valued at $205,323,667. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECL. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $235.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $306.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $228.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.87.

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.