Invesco Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 763,817 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 44,884 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 2.01% of Pool worth $260,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth $116,833,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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 worth $474,886,000 after acquiring an additional 232,914 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Pool by 27.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 224,674 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Pool by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 636,007 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $216,840,000 after purchasing an additional 129,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Pool in the 4th quarter worth about $36,203,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Pool

In related news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of Pool 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 trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,105. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Pool Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of POOL traded down $2.34 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $304.62. 117,909 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 376,897. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $348.35. 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 twelve month low of $284.28 and a twelve month high of $395.60. The stock has a market cap of $11.49 billion, a PE ratio of 27.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.13.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $987.48 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $961.04 million. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. On average, analysts anticipate that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Pool's payout ratio is 42.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on POOL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Pool in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $344.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Pool from $360.00 to $315.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com cut Pool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Pool presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $360.33.

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.