Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) Price Target Increased to $340.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Free Report) had its price objective lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $335.00 to $340.00 in a research note released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the specialty retailer's stock.

POOL has been the subject of several other research reports. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Pool from $380.00 to $386.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Pool from $345.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Pool from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Pool from $377.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Pool from $365.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $369.11.

Pool Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL traded up $4.53 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $370.53. 124,163 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 347,746. The firm has a market cap of $14.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Pool has a 1 year low of $293.51 and a 1 year high of $422.73. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $359.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $352.87.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The specialty retailer reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.11. Pool had a return on equity of 31.89% and a net margin of 8.42%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Pool will post 11.02 EPS for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Pool's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pool

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Pool by 46.3% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,376 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,766,000 after acquiring an additional 1,385 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC increased its stake in Pool by 2,149.4% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 63,702 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,704,000 after purchasing an additional 60,870 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 11.7% in the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 679 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Pool by 8.5% during the first quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 5,359 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,162,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Pool by 6.6% during the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,270 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,933,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% 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.