Rule One Partners LLC Takes Position in Pool Corporation $POOL

Rule One Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 7,501 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,716,000. Pool makes up 0.3% of Rule One Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of POOL. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pool in the 1st quarter valued at $400,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 237.9% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 17,390 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,536,000 after buying an additional 12,244 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pool in the 1st quarter valued at $639,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 164.4% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 156 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 201.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,012 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $639,000 after buying an additional 1,344 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pool news, Director John E. Stokely acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $193.06 per share, for a total transaction of $193,060.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 16,230 shares in the company, valued at $3,133,363.80. The trade was a 6.57% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director James D. Hope acquired 464 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $194.41 per share, for a total transaction of $90,206.24. Following the acquisition, the director owned 3,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,039.98. The trade was a 14.44% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 26,989 shares of company stock worth $5,067,747 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on POOL shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded Pool from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Pool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Pool from $240.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Pool from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Pool from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $261.38.

Pool Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POOL opened at $180.95 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $199.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Pool Corporation has a 1-year low of $172.68 and a 1-year high of $345.00. The company has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.10.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. Pool had a return on equity of 32.37% and a net margin of 7.57%.The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. Pool’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Pool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.870-11.170 EPS. Analysts forecast that Pool Corporation will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a positive change from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.84%.

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.