Morgan Stanley Cuts Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) Price Target to $1.50

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) had its target price trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $3.00 to $1.50 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on LESL. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Leslie’s from $1.90 to $1.55 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on Leslie’s from $3.75 to $3.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $3.00 price objective on Leslie’s in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America downgraded Leslie’s from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $2.65 to $1.40 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.65.

Leslie’s Price Performance

LESL opened at $1.01 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $187.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.73 and a beta of 1.10. Leslie’s has a 1-year low of $0.91 and a 1-year high of $8.02. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $1.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.45.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.02). Leslie’s had a negative return on equity of 6.11% and a negative net margin of 2.13%.

Institutional Trading of Leslie’s

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 461,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 55,701 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Leslie’s in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 297.7% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 474,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,059,000 after acquiring an additional 355,474 shares during the last quarter. Shay Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leslie’s in the fourth quarter worth $1,454,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 44.4% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 54,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,000 after acquiring an additional 16,674 shares during the last quarter.

About Leslie’s

Leslie’s, Inc operates as a direct-to-consumer pool and spa care brand in the United States. The company markets and sells pool and spa supplies and related products and services. It also offers various pool and spa maintenance items, such as chemicals, equipment and parts, cleaning and maintenance equipment, safety, recreational, and fitness related products.