Royce & Associates LP Cuts Stock Holdings in Pool Corporation $POOL

Royce & Associates LP reduced its position in Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 45,630 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 6,189 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned about 0.12% of Pool worth $14,148,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CNB Bank raised its position in shares of Pool by 4.1% in the third quarter. CNB Bank now owns 918 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH grew its position in shares of Pool by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 999 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Pool by 22.0% in the 3rd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 227 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Pool by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,228 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP boosted its position in Pool by 3.1% during the third quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 1,706 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $529,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on POOL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Pool from $360.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Pool from $240.00 to $232.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Pool in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Pool from $346.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Pool from $275.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pool presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $281.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pool news, CFO Melanie M. Hart sold 2,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $605,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,968,580. This trade represents a 13.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Romain Kenneth G. St purchased 5,560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $218.67 per share, for a total transaction of $1,215,805.20. Following the purchase, the senior vice president owned 82,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,115,716.15. The trade was a 7.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Pool Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $222.00 on Tuesday. Pool Corporation has a 52-week low of $210.67 and a 52-week high of $374.74. The stock has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.48, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $247.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $270.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.15). Pool had a return on equity of 31.49% and a net margin of 7.67%.The company had revenue of $982.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $999.14 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Pool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.850-11.150 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Pool Corporation will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is 46.13%.

Pool Profile

Pool Corporation is a leading wholesale distributor of swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related outdoor living products. Headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, the company serves a diverse customer base that includes service professionals, independent retailers, high-volume builders, and national retail chains. Pool Corporation’s extensive branch network enables it to maintain strong local customer relationships while leveraging its scale to source products efficiently from manufacturers around the world.

The company’s product portfolio spans pool and spa chemicals, water treatment equipment, pumps, filters, heaters, automation and control systems, liners, safety covers, and cleaning accessories.