Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) Stock Rating Upgraded by Stifel Nicolaus

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) was upgraded by Stifel Nicolaus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $16.50 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target points to a potential upside of 12.28% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Hayward in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Hayward from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Hayward from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Hayward Stock Performance

Hayward stock opened at $14.70 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $15.30 and a 200-day moving average of $15.00. Hayward has a 1 year low of $11.96 and a 1 year high of $16.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 1.69. The company has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kevin Holleran sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.52, for a total value of $726,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 522,799 shares in the company, valued at $7,591,041.48. This trade represents a 8.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hayward

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Hayward by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,041,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,152,000 after acquiring an additional 43,222 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hayward by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,232,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,260,000 after purchasing an additional 165,369 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Hayward by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,355,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,810,000 after purchasing an additional 341,424 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hayward by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 668,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,253,000 after purchasing an additional 44,978 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MSD Capital L P purchased a new stake in shares of Hayward during the 3rd quarter valued at $418,901,000.

About Hayward

Hayward Holdings, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of pool equipment and associated automation systems in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers pool equipment, including pumps, filters, robotics, suction and pressure cleaners, gas heaters and heat pumps, water features and landscape lighting, water sanitizers, salt chlorine generators, safety equipment, and in-floor automated cleaning systems, as well as LED illumination solutions.