Fifth Third Bancorp Buys 44,702 Shares of Pool Corporation $POOL

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp sharply increased its stake in Pool Corporation, buying 44,702 additional shares in Q1 and raising its holdings to 45,722 shares worth about $9.25 million.
• POOL shares are under pressure, with the stock down about 3.7% and sentiment weighed by concerns over pool-industry destocking and softer near-term demand ahead of the company’s July 23 earnings report.
• Pool recently beat EPS estimates in its last quarter and boosted its dividend to $1.30 per share, while also approving a $600 million share repurchase program.

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 4,382.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,722 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 44,702 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp owned about 0.13% of Pool worth $9,251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of POOL. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 122 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Pool by 78.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 125 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in Pool in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Pool by 348.4% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 139 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new position in Pool during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

POOL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Pool from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen raised Pool from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Pool from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Pool from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Pool from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $264.50.

Pool News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Pool this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer was bullish on Pool Corp., highlighting it as a buy idea in a recent segment, which may help support investor sentiment. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Pool Corporation is scheduled to report second-quarter 2026 results on July 23, keeping the stock sensitive to any industry news or earnings positioning ahead of the release. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company previously reported first-quarter revenue growth and held full-year guidance, but investors remain focused on whether demand and inventory trends stay stable into the summer selling season. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A large pool-industry peer reported a sharp sales miss tied to inventory destocking in the pool distribution channel and cut its full-year outlook, fueling concerns that distributors like Pool Corporation could face softer near-term orders. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Reports about destocking and weaker pool-segment demand have pressured the broader pool supply chain, which appears to be weighing on POOL shares even without a company-specific negative announcement. Article Title

Pool Stock Down 3.7%

Shares of POOL opened at $202.37 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.87. Pool Corporation has a 52 week low of $172.68 and a 52 week high of $345.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $194.13 and a 200-day moving average of $217.86.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.09. Pool had a return on equity of 32.37% and a net margin of 7.57%.The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. Pool's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Pool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.870-11.170 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pool Corporation will post 11.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is an increase from Pool's previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. Pool's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.84%.

Pool declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Pool

In other Pool news, Director David G. Whalen bought 525 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $190.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,981.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,701,771.84. This represents a 6.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John E. Stokely bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $193.06 per share, for a total transaction of $193,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 16,230 shares in the company, valued at $3,133,363.80. This trade represents a 6.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 21,989 shares of company stock valued at $4,042,747. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Pool Profile

Pool Corporation is a leading wholesale distributor of swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related outdoor living products. Headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, the company serves a diverse customer base that includes service professionals, independent retailers, high-volume builders, and national retail chains. Pool Corporation's extensive branch network enables it to maintain strong local customer relationships while leveraging its scale to source products efficiently from manufacturers around the world.

The company's product portfolio spans pool and spa chemicals, water treatment equipment, pumps, filters, heaters, automation and control systems, liners, safety covers, and cleaning accessories.

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