Caxton Associates LLP Takes $1.42 Million Position in Ecolab Inc. $ECL

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP has purchased a new stake in Ecolab Inc., acquiring 5,581 shares valued at approximately $1.42 million during the first quarter.
• Institutional investors now hold 74.91% of Ecolab's stock, with several firms, including the Saudi Central Bank and Dunhill Financial LLC, recently modifying their positions.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on Ecolab, with an average price target set at $292.00.

Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 5,581 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,415,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 176.7% in the 1st quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 119 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Ecolab by 70.6% in the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 145 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecolab in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 74.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ECL. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $307.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Ecolab from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Ecolab in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Baird R W upgraded Ecolab from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $260.00 price objective on Ecolab and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $292.00.

Ecolab Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE ECL opened at $270.77 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $272.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $261.22. Ecolab Inc. has a 12 month low of $221.62 and a 12 month high of $286.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.80 billion, a PE ratio of 36.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.01). Ecolab had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The company had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Ecolab has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 2.020-2.120 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.420-7.620 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ecolab Inc. will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Ecolab's payout ratio is currently 34.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jennifer J. Bradway sold 807 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total value of $225,378.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,326 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,208,165.28. The trade was a 15.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $278.51 per share, for a total transaction of $167,106.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 20,253 shares in the company, valued at $5,640,663.03. This trade represents a 3.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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