Strong Tower Advisory Services Acquires 52 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Strong Tower Advisory Services raised its holdings in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 929 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services’ holdings in Pool were worth $371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in POOL. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Pool by 62.4% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,204,052 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $364,021,000 after acquiring an additional 462,507 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 56.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 865,362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $308,156,000 after buying an additional 313,190 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 463.2% in the 3rd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 240,623 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $85,686,000 after buying an additional 197,900 shares during the period. Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Pool in the 2nd quarter valued at $63,689,000. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 10.1% in the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,781,791 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $667,530,000 after buying an additional 162,835 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $403.50 on Friday. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $307.77 and a 52-week high of $422.73. The company has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $393.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $368.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 2.36.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.02. Pool had a net margin of 9.44% and a return on equity of 37.94%. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.79 EPS. Pool’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.03%.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,100 shares of Pool stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $401.00, for a total value of $441,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 8,622 shares in the company, valued at $3,457,422. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

POOL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Pool from $407.00 to $436.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. TheStreet cut Pool from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Pool in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Pool in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Pool from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $371.00 to $368.00 in a report on Friday, December 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $388.63.

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.