Verity & Verity LLC Takes $356,000 Position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Verity & Verity LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 944 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $356,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Pool by 68.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pool by 232.4% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 113 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Pool by 26.2% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 207 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Pool during the second quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pool during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $75,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on POOL shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 2nd. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Pool from $345.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Pool from $365.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Pool from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Pool from $377.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $369.11.

Pool Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $360.84 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $364.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $352.32. Pool Co. has a fifty-two week low of $293.51 and a fifty-two week high of $422.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The specialty retailer reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.11. Pool had a net margin of 8.42% and a return on equity of 31.89%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Pool Co. will post 11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is 41.31%.

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.