Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) Stock Position Lessened by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund reduced its stake in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 17.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,584 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,828 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Pool were worth $2,927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Pool during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pool during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Pool during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank lifted its position in Pool by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 412 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on POOL shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $368.00.

Insider Activity at Pool

In related news, 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 directly owns 62,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POOL opened at $342.54 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $343.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $355.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.37, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $293.51 and a 52-week high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.08. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The firm had revenue of $987.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $961.04 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.55%.

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.