Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) Price Target Raised to $228.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) had its price objective increased by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $225.00 to $228.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would suggest a potential downside of 1.61% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on ECL. Bank of America raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $251.00 to $272.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Ecolab from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Mizuho upgraded Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $216.00 to $260.00 in a report on Friday, April 12th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Ecolab from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Ecolab in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ecolab presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $249.13.

Ecolab Price Performance

Ecolab stock traded up $2.88 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $231.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 542,264 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,148,044. Ecolab has a 52 week low of $156.72 and a 52 week high of $249.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $239.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $226.51. The stock has a market cap of $66.18 billion, a PE ratio of 42.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.11.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.01. Ecolab had a return on equity of 20.56% and a net margin of 10.01%. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ecolab will post 6.58 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ecolab news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,890,528.07. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total value of $1,023,840.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,812,680.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Ecolab by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ecolab during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

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.