CIBC Asset Management Inc Grows Stock Holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 7.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,867 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,772 shares during the quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $9,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Ecolab by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,663 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $219,000. TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in Ecolab by 21.0% in the 1st quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 6,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,056 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $264,000. 74.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ecolab Stock Performance

NYSE ECL opened at $245.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $182.39 and a 1 year high of $262.61. The company has a market capitalization of $69.44 billion, a PE ratio of 34.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a fifty day moving average of $252.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $243.82.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Ecolab in a report on Friday, October 18th. 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 note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $306.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of Ecolab from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $276.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.20.

Insider Transactions at Ecolab

In other news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total transaction of $950,196.63. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,586.40. This represents a 32.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. This trade represents a 1.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 478,355 shares of company stock worth $117,922,965. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.