Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Lowers Stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,681 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 67 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Pool were worth $573,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of POOL. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in Pool by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 274,165 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $93,474,000 after buying an additional 69,435 shares in the last quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pool during the fourth quarter worth about $663,000. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ raised its stake in Pool by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 9,694 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,291,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Pool by 2,300.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 72 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Pool by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,280 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $777,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Pool in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $344.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $365.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total value of $3,460,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 62,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,105. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Pool Price Performance

Pool stock opened at $315.05 on Friday. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $293.51 and a 52-week high of $402.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $336.70 and its 200 day moving average is $352.37. The company has a market cap of $11.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.93, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.13.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $987.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $961.04 million. Pool had a net margin of 8.18% and a return on equity of 31.11%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.55%.

About Pool

Pool Corporation distributes swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related leisure products in the United States and internationally. The company offers maintenance products, including chemicals, supplies, and pool accessories; repair and replacement parts for pool equipment, such as cleaners, filters, heaters, pumps, and lights; and building materials, such as concrete, plumbing and electrical components, functional and decorative pool surfaces, decking materials, tiles, hardscapes, and natural stones for pool installations and remodeling.