Pool Corporation (POOL) - What Are Researchers Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts remain divided on Pool Corporation: Three recommend selling, five are neutral and five recommend buying, resulting in a consensus “Hold” rating and an average 12-month price target of $227.70.
• Pool slightly exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.40 in EPS versus $3.36 expected and $1.50 billion in revenue versus $1.48 billion expected; revenue increased 3.7% year over year.
• Institutional investors own approximately 98.99% of the stock, while Pool maintains a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, equivalent to a 2.7% annual yield.

Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $227.70.

Several research analysts have recently commented on POOL shares. Longbow Research reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Pool in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Citigroup restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Pool in a report on Monday, October 19th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Pool from $280.00 to $227.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on shares of Pool from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Pool from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday.

More Pool News

Here are the key news stories impacting Pool this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo analyst commentary projects that Pool Corporation (POOL) shares could rise, potentially improving investor sentiment toward the pool-equipment distributor. Pool Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo Analyst Says
• Positive Sentiment: Stephens also expects the stock price to increase, adding a second constructive analyst view. The reports do not provide enough detail to assess the price targets or assumptions behind the calls. Pool Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stephens Analyst Says
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest reported quarter modestly exceeded earnings and revenue expectations, which may help offset concerns about softer housing and discretionary spending trends.

Institutional Trading of Pool

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Pool during the 2nd quarter worth $866,576,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the 2nd quarter valued at about $148,216,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the 2nd quarter valued at about $93,011,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,543,000. Finally, Southpoint Capital Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Pool by 66.7% during the first quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 500,000 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $101,165,000 after buying an additional 200,000 shares in the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pool Price Performance

POOL stock opened at $195.23 on Tuesday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $174.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $203.87. Pool has a 12-month low of $152.70 and a 12-month high of $297.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $7.09 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.05.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $3.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.36 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.48 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 33.50% and a net margin of 7.27%. Pool's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.39 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pool will post 10.98 EPS for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Pool's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.84%.

Pool Company Profile

Pool Corporation, doing business as POOLCORP, is a wholesale distributor of swimming pool and outdoor living products. The company supplies pool contractors, retailers, builders, and service professionals with products used to construct, renovate, maintain, and enhance residential and commercial pools.

Its product offerings include swimming pool equipment, pumps, filters, heaters, cleaners, lighting, chemicals, replacement parts, and maintenance supplies. POOLCORP also distributes products for outdoor living, including patio and recreational items, as well as irrigation and landscape-related supplies in selected markets.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, POOLCORP serves customers through a network of distribution centers and sales operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia.

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