Wedgewood Partners Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Wedgewood Partners Inc. lessened its holdings in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,810 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,722 shares during the period. Pool comprises 2.0% of Wedgewood Partners Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Wedgewood Partners Inc. owned 0.08% of Pool worth $10,163,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Pool by 2,300.0% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 72 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in Pool in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Pool by 76.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 138 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on POOL shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Pool in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $344.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Pool from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Pool in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $336.22.

Insider Activity at Pool

In other Pool news, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,045,105. This represents a 11.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total transaction of $3,460,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares in the company, valued at $21,651,642. The trade was a 13.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Pool Trading Up 0.2%

POOL stock traded up $0.71 during trading on Thursday, hitting $303.47. The company had a trading volume of 375,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 399,719. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $309.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $336.96. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $284.28 and a 52-week high of $395.60.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.10 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.85 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This is a boost from Pool's previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Pool's payout ratio is currently 46.90%.

Pool announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About Pool

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.