Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $316.85, but opened at $345.00. Pool shares last traded at $323.36, with a volume of 483,266 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

POOL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer decreased 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Pool from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $300.00 target price on shares of Pool in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Pool in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $344.00 price objective for the company. Finally, 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 report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pool presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $344.50.

Pool Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm's 50-day moving average is $300.95 and its 200-day moving average is $317.93. The company has a market cap of $12.27 billion, a PE ratio of 30.62, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.10.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.19 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.79 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 30.11% and a net margin of 7.77%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Pool Corporation will post 11.32 EPS for the current year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is a boost from Pool's previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Pool's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.90%.

Pool announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Pool

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in Pool by 471.4% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 80 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in Pool in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Pool in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Pool by 790.9% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 98 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Pool in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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