Everence Capital Management Inc. Buys New Stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 950 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $324,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Pool in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Pool in the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Pool by 101.2% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 326 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Pool by 24.8% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 402 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the third quarter valued at $160,000. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of POOL opened at $332.51 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.65 billion, a PE ratio of 28.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $361.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $352.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Pool Co. has a 12-month low of $293.51 and a 12-month high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The specialty retailer reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. Pool had a net margin of 8.42% and a return on equity of 31.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 11.02 EPS for the current year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. Pool’s payout ratio is 41.31%.

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.