Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Posts Earnings Results

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) issued its earnings results on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.01, Zacks reports. The company 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.54 EPS.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded down $1.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $244.59. 604,027 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,085,859. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $252.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $241.61. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $167.30 and a 1-year high of $262.61. The firm has a market cap of $69.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.46, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ecolab

In other Ecolab news, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Gregory B. Cook sold 3,811 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.33, for a total transaction of $950,196.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,586.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Victoria Reich sold 393 shares of the company’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 directly owns 24,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Ecolab from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $240.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $267.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $306.00 target price on shares of Ecolab in a report on Wednesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.20.

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.