Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) Sees Large Volume Increase – Time to Buy?

Shares of Hayward Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HAYW) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . 4,737,833 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 96% from the previous session’s volume of 2,413,147 shares.The stock last traded at $12.9450 and had previously closed at $12.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Hayward in a report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings cut Hayward from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Hayward in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Hayward in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Hayward in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hayward currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.50.

Hayward Stock Up 1.0%

The company has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $14.54 and a 200 day moving average of $14.62. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.02. Hayward had a net margin of 13.83% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The firm had revenue of $318.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $303.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Hayward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.840-0.870 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hayward Holdings, Inc. will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Susan M. Canning sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.84, for a total transaction of $44,940.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 167,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,155,977.24. The trade was a 2.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Kevin Holleran sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.85, for a total value of $692,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 701,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,712,090.90. The trade was a 6.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 273,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,430,040. 4.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hayward

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Hayward in the 2nd quarter worth about $422,455,000. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI raised its stake in shares of Hayward by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 9,089,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,438,000 after buying an additional 1,063,380 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Hayward by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,453,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,726,000 after buying an additional 761,145 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Hayward by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,798,842 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,209,000 after acquiring an additional 90,733 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Hayward by 17,180.8% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,576,737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,811,000 after purchasing an additional 2,561,826 shares in the last quarter.

About Hayward

Hayward Holdings, Inc designs, manufactures and sells equipment and systems used in residential and commercial swimming pools. Its product portfolio includes pumps, filters, heaters, heat pumps, automatic cleaners, lighting, salt chlorination systems and pool automation and controls.

The company’s products are intended to help pool owners and professionals circulate, filter, heat, sanitize and manage pool water. Hayward sells through distributors, retailers, pool builders and service professionals, serving customers primarily in North America as well as selected international markets.

Hayward’s business traces its history to 1925 and has developed from a pool-equipment manufacturer into a provider of connected and energy-efficient pool solutions.