Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Cuts Stock Position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lowered its stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 27.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,898 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Pool were worth $2,693,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sigma Planning Corp grew its stake in shares of Pool by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 2,020 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $689,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV purchased a new stake in shares of Pool in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,657,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Pool by 62.6% in the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 172,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $58,825,000 after buying an additional 66,409 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in Pool by 298.4% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 749 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Pool by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total value of $3,460,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Pool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $368.00.

Pool Price Performance

NASDAQ POOL opened at $347.74 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $343.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $355.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.83, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Pool Co. has a 1-year low of $293.51 and a 1-year high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share 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 return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. On average, equities analysts predict that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.55%.

Pool Company 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.