Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Price Target Raised to $260.00

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its price target hoisted by Royal Bank of Canada from $238.00 to $260.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Ecolab from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ecolab from $211.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ecolab from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Barclays upgraded Ecolab from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and lifted their price target for the company from $225.00 to $260.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $233.65.

Ecolab Stock Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $224.98 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $224.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $202.37. The company has a market capitalization of $64.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Ecolab has a 1-year low of $156.72 and a 1-year high of $231.86.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab will post 6.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 19th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 18th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecolab

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Ecolab during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ecolab by 150.0% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Motco bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ecolab in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 2,042.9% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.