Deutsche Bank AG Purchases 13,542 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 400,654 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 13,542 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG’s holdings in Pool were worth $136,599,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of POOL. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pool by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,443,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,514,950,000 after acquiring an additional 21,870 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Pool by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,260,313 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $474,886,000 after buying an additional 232,914 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Pool by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,042,514 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $355,435,000 after buying an additional 224,674 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Pool by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 977,862 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $332,566,000 after acquiring an additional 13,519 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Pool by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 763,817 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $260,416,000 after acquiring an additional 44,884 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $301.92 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Pool Co. has a 1-year low of $284.28 and a 1-year high of $395.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $314.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $340.03.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.10). Pool had a net margin of 8.18% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This is an increase from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pool

In other Pool news, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of Pool stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,105. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total value of $3,460,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 62,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

POOL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Pool from $325.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $300.00 price objective on Pool in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Pool in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $344.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $336.22.

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.