Next Capital Management LLC Acquires New Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Next Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 2,925 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $815,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Ecolab in the third quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecolab during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Ecolab in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Ecolab in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecolab during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $337.00 price target on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Ecolab from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Ecolab from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ecolab from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of Ecolab in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michel D. Doukeris bought 7,750 shares of Ecolab stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $258.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 8,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,108. This trade represents a 1,345.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Benjamin M. Clark bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $263.83 per share, for a total transaction of $263,830.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 1,083 shares in the company, valued at $285,727.89. The trade was a 1,204.82% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ecolab Price Performance

Shares of ECL stock opened at $276.28 on Friday. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.15 and a 12 month high of $309.27. The company has a market capitalization of $77.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $274.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 22.72%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. Ecolab has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Ecolab Company Profile

Ecolab, Inc is a global provider of water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services. The company develops and supplies cleaning and sanitizing chemicals, dispensing equipment, water-treatment systems, pest elimination services and related technologies designed to help businesses maintain clean, safe and efficient operations. Its offerings span both products and onsite services, often paired with technical support and training.

Ecolab serves a broad range of end markets including hospitality and foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, manufacturing and industrial operations, and energy and utilities.