Findlay Park Partners LLP Raises Holdings in Pool Corporation $POOL

Key Points

• Findlay Park Partners LLP increased its holdings in Pool Corporation by 1.3%, acquiring an additional 3,300 shares during the first quarter, and now owns about 0.68% of the company valued at $81.33 million.
• Pool Corporation reported earnings of $5.17 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, although its revenue of $1.78 billion fell slightly short of estimates.
• The company has authorized a share buyback plan allowing it to repurchase up to $600 million of its stock, indicating that the board believes the shares are undervalued; it also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share.

Findlay Park Partners LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 255,475 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 3,300 shares during the period. Findlay Park Partners LLP owned about 0.68% of Pool worth $81,330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of POOL. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Pool by 471.4% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 80 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in Pool during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Pool during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Pool by 790.9% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 98 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pool Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ POOL opened at $321.43 on Tuesday. Pool Corporation has a one year low of $282.22 and a one year high of $395.60. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $306.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 2.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.00 billion, a PE ratio of 29.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.07.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. Pool had a net margin of 7.79% and a return on equity of 30.99%. Pool's revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.99 EPS. Pool has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.700-11.200 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pool Corporation will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Pool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. Pool's payout ratio is presently 46.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

POOL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Pool from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Pool from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $322.00 to $346.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $342.14.

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.

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