Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) Receives $3.96 Average PT from Analysts

Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $3.96.

Several analysts recently commented on LESL shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $5.25 to $2.50 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 19th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $4.00 price target on shares of Leslie’s in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th.

Institutional Trading of Leslie’s

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its holdings in Leslie’s by 12.4% during the 1st quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,519,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,375,000 after buying an additional 500,292 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,116,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,097,000 after acquiring an additional 492,416 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Leslie’s in the first quarter valued at about $100,000. Private Management Group Inc. increased its position in Leslie’s by 93.8% in 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 during the period. Finally, Ariel Investments LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 11,618,490 shares during the last quarter.

Leslie’s Stock Performance

Shares of LESL stock opened at $2.68 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $2.90 and a 200-day moving average of $3.81. Leslie’s has a 52-week low of $2.42 and a 52-week high of $8.21. The stock has a market cap of $495.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.17.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $569.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.99 million. Leslie’s had a net margin of 0.22% and a negative return on equity of 6.11%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Leslie’s will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Leslie’s Company Profile

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.