StockNews.com Downgrades Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) to Sell

StockNews.com cut shares of Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Pool from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Pool from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Pool from $345.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Pool from $380.00 to $386.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $369.25.

Pool Price Performance

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

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $1.43 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. Research analysts expect that Pool will post 11.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in POOL. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Pool by 1.6% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,102,921 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $646,291,000 after purchasing an additional 33,955 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 964,343 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $362,196,000 after buying an additional 6,232 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL increased its holdings in shares of Pool by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 854,709 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $262,678,000 after purchasing an additional 11,059 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 0.6% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 565,339 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $213,020,000 after purchasing an additional 3,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 26.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 433,166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $133,125,000 after acquiring an additional 90,951 shares during the period. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.