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

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 33.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,542 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,817 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Pool were worth $1,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Pool by 232.4% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 113 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Pool by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 207 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the 2nd quarter valued at about $74,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in Pool in the second quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Pool by 693.5% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 246 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

POOL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Pool from $356.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of Pool from $425.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Pool from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Pool from $365.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $350.00.

Pool Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POOL opened at $358.49 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.72 billion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 2.48. Pool Co. has a fifty-two week low of $293.51 and a fifty-two week high of $422.73. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $345.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $360.16.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The specialty retailer reported $4.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.90 by $0.09. Pool had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 32.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.89 EPS. Pool’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 10.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.56%.

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.