Great Lakes Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,724 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Pool were worth $1,086,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pool in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in Pool by 250.0% in the fourth quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 77 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Pool in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in Pool by 73.7% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of Pool by 96.7% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 118 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Pool

In other Pool news, General Counsel Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $401.00, for a total value of $441,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 8,622 shares in the company, valued at $3,457,422. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on POOL shares. TheStreet lowered Pool from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Pool from $436.00 to $416.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.80.

Pool Price Performance

Shares of Pool stock opened at $371.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $14.23 billion, a PE ratio of 29.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50 day moving average of $383.34 and a 200 day moving average of $379.03. Pool Co. has a 52 week low of $307.77 and a 52 week high of $422.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.87 by ($0.02). Pool had a return on equity of 35.49% and a net margin of 9.17%. The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.56%.

Pool 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.