Flputnam Investment Management Co. Decreases Stock Holdings in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,614 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,076 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Pool were worth $1,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of POOL. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Pool by 62.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,204,052 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $364,021,000 after purchasing an additional 462,507 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Pool by 56.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 865,362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $308,156,000 after purchasing an additional 313,190 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in Pool by 463.2% during the third 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 purchasing an additional 197,900 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Pool by 30,047.2% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 183,898 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $73,322,000 after purchasing an additional 183,288 shares during the period. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Pool by 11.1% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,618,956 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $554,395,000 after purchasing an additional 162,319 shares during the period. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pool Price Performance

NASDAQ:POOL opened at $369.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $395.49 and a 200 day moving average of $372.61. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $307.77 and a 52-week high of $422.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 2.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.00.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.02. Pool had a return on equity of 37.94% and a net margin of 9.44%. The business had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Pool Co. will post 13.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital lowered Pool from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $380.00 to $415.00 in a report on Monday, January 8th. TheStreet lowered Pool from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Pool in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Pool from $407.00 to $436.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Pool in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pool currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $388.63.

Insider Transactions at Pool

In other news, General Counsel Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,100 shares of Pool stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $401.00, for a total value of $441,100.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now 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. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

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.