LRI Investments LLC Makes New $243,000 Investment in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 652 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $243,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 843,650 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $340,413,000 after acquiring an additional 47,640 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Pool by 9.6% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 525,004 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $211,839,000 after purchasing an additional 45,953 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Pool by 7.3% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 342,215 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $138,084,000 after buying an additional 23,274 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pool by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 335,844 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $133,904,000 after buying an additional 8,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 334,839 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $133,504,000 after buying an additional 37,348 shares during the period. 98.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pool Stock Up 3.3 %

NASDAQ POOL traded up $11.88 on Friday, hitting $371.82. 787,168 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 481,398. The company has a market capitalization of $14.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $336.23 and a 200 day moving average of $368.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Pool Co. has a twelve month low of $293.51 and a twelve month high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The specialty retailer reported $4.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.90 by $0.09. Pool had a return on equity of 32.85% and a net margin of 8.58%. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Pool Co. will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is a positive change from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is 37.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on POOL. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $305.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Pool from $356.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Pool from $365.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Pool from $360.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Pool from $305.00 to $377.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Pool presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $347.22.

Pool Profile

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.