Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) Given Market Perform Rating at Telsey Advisory Group

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reissued by Telsey Advisory Group in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $4.00 price target on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 44.40% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on LESL. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Leslie’s from $6.40 to $5.15 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Leslie’s from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Leslie’s from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $5.25 to $2.50 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.96.

Leslie’s Price Performance

LESL stock traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $2.77. 2,710,080 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,081,770. Leslie’s has a 12-month low of $2.42 and a 12-month high of $8.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $3.39 and its 200 day moving average is $5.02. The company has a market cap of $511.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 1.16.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. Leslie’s had a net margin of 1.06% and a negative return on equity of 12.55%. The firm had revenue of $569.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. Leslie’s’s revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Leslie’s will post 0.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Leslie’s

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LESL. Ariel Investments LLC grew its holdings in Leslie’s by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 36,601,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,360,000 after acquiring an additional 11,618,490 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 136.6% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 2,230,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,415,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288,013 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 93.8% during the second quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,516,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,545,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218,047 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in Leslie’s by 1,300.5% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 1,187,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,977,000 after buying an additional 1,103,096 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Leslie’s by 477.4% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,110,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,653,000 after acquiring an additional 918,084 shares in the last quarter.

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.