Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Friday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Pool from $365.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Pool from $356.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Pool from $377.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Pool from $345.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Pool from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $367.89.

Pool Stock Performance

NASDAQ:POOL traded down $11.33 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $366.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 308,849 shares, compared to its average volume of 348,867. Pool has a fifty-two week low of $293.51 and a fifty-two week high of $422.73. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $359.72 and its 200-day moving average is $353.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $14.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.01.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The specialty retailer reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.11. Pool had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 32.85%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.50 EPS. Pool’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Pool will post 10.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Pool by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,102,921 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $646,291,000 after buying an additional 33,955 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Pool by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 854,709 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $262,678,000 after purchasing an additional 11,059 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Pool by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 525,004 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $211,839,000 after purchasing an additional 45,953 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Pool by 26.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 433,166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $133,125,000 after purchasing an additional 90,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Pool by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 430,300 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $132,244,000 after purchasing an additional 37,598 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Company 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.