Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) Shares Bought by Congress Asset Management Co.

Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 5.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 41,855 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,066 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Pool were worth $13,325,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of POOL. Impact Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 8.0% in the first quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,099 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $668,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Caledonia Investments PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 6.3% in the first quarter. Caledonia Investments PLC now owns 129,387 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $41,152,000 after purchasing an additional 7,700 shares in the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 40.4% in the first quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 3,383 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,077,000 after purchasing an additional 974 shares in the last quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 46.3% in the first quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC now owns 996 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Pool by 28.0% in the first quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 1,655 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on POOL shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Pool from $325.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Pool in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $344.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Pool from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $300.00 target price on shares of Pool in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Pool currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $336.22.

Pool Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $297.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $304.72 and its 200-day moving average is $332.06. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $284.28 and a 52-week high of $395.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 2.05.

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

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.90%.

Pool declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Pool

In other Pool news, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,105. This trade represents a 11.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Pool Company 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.