Hayward Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:HAYW)

Hayward Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HAYW - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 4,000 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 264% compared to the average volume of 1,098 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HAYW shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Hayward from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Hayward from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hayward has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hayward

In related news, CEO Kevin Holleran sold 50,000 shares of Hayward stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $626,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 623,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,806,720.80. The trade was a 7.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 5.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hayward

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hayward by 30.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,891 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in Hayward by 61.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 8,546 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,268 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Hayward by 51.1% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,584 shares of the company's stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 3,241 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital acquired a new stake in shares of Hayward in the first quarter valued at about $142,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hayward during the 1st quarter worth approximately $150,000.

Hayward Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Hayward stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $13.63. 1,659,386 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,790,750. The company has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.14. Hayward has a 52 week low of $11.10 and a 52 week high of $16.87. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $13.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.62.

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.01. Hayward had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 9.93%. The business had revenue of $228.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.37 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.08 earnings per share. Hayward's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Hayward will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hayward Company Profile

Hayward Holdings, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of pool equipment and associated automation systems in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers pool equipment, including pumps, filters, robotics, suction and pressure cleaners, gas heaters and heat pumps, water features and landscape lighting, water sanitizers, salt chlorine generators, safety equipment, and in-floor automated cleaning systems, as well as LED illumination solutions.

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