Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Buys Shares of 1,814 Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL)

Key Points

• Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired 1,814 shares of Pool Corporation, valued at approximately $577,000, marking their entry into the stock during the 1st quarter.
• Pool Corporation has implemented a share repurchase program worth $600 million, indicating that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.
• The firm recently increased its quarterly dividend from $1.20 to $1.25 per share, reflecting a positive adjustment in shareholder returns.

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,814 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $577,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its stake in shares of Pool by 7.8% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 468 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Pool by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 888 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Pool by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,696 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,283,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Pool by 5.2% during the first quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 773 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Pool by 20.3% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 225 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on POOL shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Pool from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Pool from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $300.00 price objective on Pool in a report on Friday, April 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pool currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $338.71.

Pool Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:POOL traded down $3.42 on Monday, hitting $321.48. 561,384 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 647,077. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.53 and a beta of 1.10. Pool Corporation has a 52 week low of $282.22 and a 52 week high of $395.60. 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 company's 50-day moving average price is $301.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $317.77.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 7.79%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.99 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Pool Corporation will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is a positive change from Pool's previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Pool's payout ratio is presently 46.13%.

Pool declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.