Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $261.3750.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on POOL shares. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Pool from $346.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $246.00 target price on shares of Pool in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Pool from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Pool from $240.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Pool from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John E. Stokely bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $193.06 per share, for a total transaction of $193,060.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 16,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,133,363.80. This trade represents a 6.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $175.95 per share, for a total transaction of $1,759,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,057,002.60. This represents a 33.21% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 26,989 shares of company stock valued at $5,067,747. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pool

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in POOL. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the first quarter worth about $400,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Pool by 237.9% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 17,390 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,536,000 after acquiring an additional 12,244 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Pool during the 1st quarter valued at about $639,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Pool by 164.4% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 156 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Pool by 201.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,012 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 1,344 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Trading Down 1.8%

NASDAQ:POOL opened at $181.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $201.61 and a 200-day moving average of $227.10. The company has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.69, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.16. Pool has a one year low of $172.68 and a one year high of $345.00.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Pool had a net margin of 7.57% and a return on equity of 32.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. Pool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.870-11.170 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pool will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Pool’s payout ratio is 47.84%.

Pool declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Key Headlines Impacting Pool

Here are the key news stories impacting Pool this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said Pool Corp. could be a stock that goes higher, which may help sentiment by reinforcing the view that the shares could recover from recent weakness. Jim Cramer: This Real Estate Stock Is ‘Going To Go Higher’
• Positive Sentiment: Argosy Investors disclosed that it added Pool to its portfolio, which can be viewed as a vote of confidence from an institutional investor. Argosy Investors adds Capital One and Pool as it exits multiple holdings
• Neutral Sentiment: There was a note about short interest in Pool rising, but the reported figure was 0 shares, so it does not appear to be a meaningful new signal for the stock.

About Pool

Pool Corporation is a leading wholesale distributor of swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related outdoor living products. Headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, the company serves a diverse customer base that includes service professionals, independent retailers, high-volume builders, and national retail chains. Pool Corporation’s extensive branch network enables it to maintain strong local customer relationships while leveraging its scale to source products efficiently from manufacturers around the world.

The company’s product portfolio spans pool and spa chemicals, water treatment equipment, pumps, filters, heaters, automation and control systems, liners, safety covers, and cleaning accessories.