Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $336.22.

POOL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Pool in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Pool in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $344.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Pool from $325.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

Pool Trading Up 0.5%

POOL opened at $322.45 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $12.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.59, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.20. Pool has a one year low of $284.28 and a one year high of $395.60. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $310.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $337.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 2.05.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pool will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Pool Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pool

In related news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total transaction of $3,460,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,105. This represents a 11.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pool

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of POOL. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of Pool by 907.2% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 37,399 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $12,768,000 after acquiring an additional 33,686 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 816.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 40,860 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $13,601,000 after acquiring an additional 36,403 shares during the last quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of Pool in the fourth quarter worth about $653,000. World Equity Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Pool in the fourth quarter worth about $272,000. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 104.0% in the fourth quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 3,778 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 1,926 shares during the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Pool

Pool Corporation distributes swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related leisure products in the United States and internationally. The company offers maintenance products, including chemicals, supplies, and pool accessories; repair and replacement parts for pool equipment, such as cleaners, filters, heaters, pumps, and lights; and building materials, such as concrete, plumbing and electrical components, functional and decorative pool surfaces, decking materials, tiles, hardscapes, and natural stones for pool installations and remodeling.