Natixis Advisors L.P. Buys 978 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its stake in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,550 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 978 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned 0.08% of Pool worth $12,180,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Pool during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Pool by 250.0% in the fourth quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 77 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pool in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Pool by 73.7% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its position in Pool by 96.7% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 118 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on POOL shares. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Pool from $436.00 to $416.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, TheStreet cut shares of Pool from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Pool presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $391.80.

Insider Transactions at Pool

In related news, General Counsel Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $401.00, for a total transaction of $441,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 8,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,457,422. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POOL opened at $372.68 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $14.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $389.87 and its 200 day moving average is $375.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Pool Co. has a 1-year low of $307.77 and a 1-year high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.87 by ($0.02). Pool had a return on equity of 35.49% and a net margin of 9.17%. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pool Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.43%.

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.