Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $345.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Pool from $380.00 to $386.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Pool from $377.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Pool from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Pool from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $369.25.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of POOL opened at $351.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $366.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $352.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.38 billion, a PE ratio of 30.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.01. Pool has a 52-week low of $293.51 and a 52-week high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The specialty retailer reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. Pool had a net margin of 8.42% and a return on equity of 31.89%. The business’s revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.50 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pool will post 11.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.31%.

Institutional Trading of Pool

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Pool by 37,863.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 137,808 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $51,926,000 after purchasing an additional 137,445 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its stake in shares of Pool by 16.1% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 13,369 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,858 shares during the last quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Pool by 16.8% in the second quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC now owns 14,128 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,342,000 after buying an additional 2,034 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Pool during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $720,000. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in Pool by 1.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 5,121 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,930,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Company Profile

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.