Inspire Investing LLC Sells 2,448 Shares of Pool Corporation $POOL

Key Points

• Inspire Investing LLC drastically reduced its stake in Pool Corporation by 71.2% in the first quarter, leaving it with 988 shares valued at approximately $315,000.
• Institutional investors, including Vanguard and JPMorgan, have been active in increasing their stakes in Pool, reflecting a high institutional ownership of 98.99% in the company.
• Analysts are optimistic about Pool's future, with several upgrades and increased price targets, resulting in a consensus price target of $342.14 and an average rating of "Hold."

Inspire Investing LLC decreased its position in Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 71.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 988 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,448 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC's holdings in Pool were worth $315,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of POOL. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 5,213 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pool during the fourth quarter valued at $429,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 139.9% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 7,618 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,597,000 after purchasing an additional 4,442 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,508 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,878,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 3,547 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on POOL shares. Wall Street Zen raised Pool from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Pool from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Pool from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on Pool from $322.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $342.14.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of POOL stock traded down $7.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $317.92. The stock had a trading volume of 1,985,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 523,079. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $315.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $310.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Pool Corporation has a one year low of $282.22 and a one year high of $395.60. The firm has a market cap of $11.86 billion, a PE ratio of 29.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Pool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. Pool's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.13%.

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.