Hsbc Holdings PLC Trims Stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lowered its stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,239 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 1,397 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.22% of Pool worth $28,048,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,443,451 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,514,950,000 after acquiring an additional 21,870 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake 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 valued at $474,886,000 after purchasing an additional 232,914 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Pool by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,042,514 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $355,435,000 after purchasing an additional 224,674 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pool by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 977,862 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $332,566,000 after buying an additional 13,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Pool by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 763,817 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $260,416,000 after buying an additional 44,884 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company's stock.

Pool Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL traded up $2.57 on Tuesday, reaching $293.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 501,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 383,489. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $321.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $343.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 2.05. The company has a market cap of $11.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.05, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.13. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $284.28 and a 52-week high of $395.60.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued 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). The company had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The company's revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Pool Co. will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Pool's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

POOL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stephens lowered their price target on shares of Pool from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Pool in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $344.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $300.00 price objective on Pool in a research note on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Pool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Pool currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $336.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the firm's 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were 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 $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

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.