Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) have been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the twelve analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and ten have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $2.65.

A number of brokerages have commented on LESL. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Leslie’s from $1.90 to $1.55 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Leslie’s from $3.00 to $1.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $3.00 price objective on shares of Leslie’s in a report on Tuesday, February 4th.

Institutional Trading of Leslie’s

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its holdings in shares of Leslie’s by 36.1% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 5,700 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Leslie’s by 52.6% during the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 5,776 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Leslie’s by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,092,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,666,000 after acquiring an additional 7,417 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in Leslie’s by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 171,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 7,493 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kerrisdale Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Leslie’s by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Kerrisdale Advisers LLC now owns 160,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,000 after acquiring an additional 9,033 shares during the period.

Leslie’s Price Performance

NASDAQ LESL opened at $0.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $157.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.67 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.33. Leslie’s has a 52-week low of $0.76 and a 52-week high of $7.70.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.02). Leslie’s had a negative return on equity of 6.11% and a negative net margin of 2.13%.

About Leslie’s

Leslie’s, Inc operates as a direct-to-consumer pool and spa care brand in the United States. The company markets and sells pool and spa supplies and related products and services. It also offers various pool and spa maintenance items, such as chemicals, equipment and parts, cleaning and maintenance equipment, safety, recreational, and fitness related products.