DnB Asset Management AS Acquires 258 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,312 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Pool were worth $2,152,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in POOL. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Pool by 2,300.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 72 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Pool during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pool in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Pool by 76.9% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 138 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Pool during the third quarter worth $60,000. 98.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on POOL. StockNews.com cut shares of Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Pool in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating and a $344.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $365.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,045,105. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Pool Stock Performance

NASDAQ POOL opened at $318.13 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $339.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $353.40. Pool Co. has a 12-month low of $293.51 and a 12-month high of $402.45. The company has a market cap of $11.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.20, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.08. Pool had a net margin of 8.18% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The company had revenue of $987.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $961.04 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Pool’s payout ratio is 42.55%.

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.