Noteworthy Insider Trading Activity Witnessed at Beazer Homes USA Inc. (BZH) and 4 Other Companies

Cliffs Natural Resources Saw Lead Director Jettison Nearly Entire Stake Last Week

Lead Director of Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE:CLF)’s Board, Douglas C. Taylor, sold 576,470 shares on Wednesday, 2.06 million shares on Thursday, and 4.60 million shares on Friday, at prices that ranged from $3.50 to $4.61 per share, remaining with a mere 72,319 shares when the spate of selling was done. Mr. Taylor co-founded New York-based hedge fund Casablanca Capital LP, which is currently in the process of closing down following the death of co-founder Donald G. Drapkin, so the aforementioned sales were part of the firm’s winding down process.

The shares of the mining and natural resources company were up by 233% year-to-date through the end of April, but are now up by about 122% following a disappointing performance in the past five trading sessions due to a weak manufacturing report out of the world’s second-largest economy, China. The recent rally in metals and mining stocks has been fueled by a weakening U.S dollar, recovering hopes for the Chinese economy, and the recovery of certain commodities. Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management owned 2.37 million shares of Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE:CLF) on December 31.

Ecolab Had Two Insiders Unload Shares This Past Week

Dr. Larry Berger, Executive Vice President and Chief Technical Officer at Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL), filed Friday to disclose the sale of 11,590 shares at prices that ranged from $116.31 to $116.35 per share. After the recent sale, Dr. Berger currently owns 27,729 shares. Furthermore, Director Jerry A. Grundhofer discarded 15,000 units of common stock on Friday at prices varying between $116.37 and $116.92 per unit, cutting his overall holding to 62,307 shares.

The provider of water, hygiene, and energy technologies and services has seen its shares advance by 2% since the beginning of 2016. Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) has paid cash dividends for 79 consecutive years and currently pays out a quarterly cash dividend of $0.35 per share, which equates to an annual dividend yield of 1.20%. In late March, analysts at Credit Suisse assigned a ‘Neutral’ rating on Ecolab and increased their price target on the stock to $109 from $107, citing sustained concerns over the company’s energy business but long-term positive views on its institutional and industrial segments. Barry Dargan’s Intermede Investment Partners acquired a new stake of 156,472 shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the March quarter.

Disclosure: None