Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Buys 2,231 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 219,803 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,231 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned 0.58% of Pool worth $74,940,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Pool in the third quarter worth about $60,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Pool by 57.8% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,661 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,510,000 after buying an additional 2,441 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Pool in the third quarter worth about $217,000. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in Pool in the third quarter worth about $765,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Pool by 22.7% during the third 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 in the last quarter. 98.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POOL traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $291.33. 515,576 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 383,018. 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 Co. has a one year low of $284.28 and a one year high of $395.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.83, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $322.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $343.91.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 firm had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.10 billion. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pool Co. will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. Pool's payout ratio is 45.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the director now owns 62,577 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,223 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,667 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,105. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on POOL. Stephens decreased their target price on shares of Pool from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Pool from $325.00 to $310.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $322.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Pool from $360.00 to $315.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $341.22.

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.