Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) Announces $1.20 Quarterly Dividend

Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 26th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a dividend of 1.20 per share by the specialty retailer on Wednesday, March 26th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th.

Pool has increased its dividend payment by an average of 16.4% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. Pool has a payout ratio of 38.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Pool to earn $12.83 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 37.4%.

Pool Stock Up 1.3 %

POOL stock traded up $4.46 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $347.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 468,654 shares, compared to its average volume of 396,865. 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 has a 52-week low of $293.51 and a 52-week high of $422.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.76, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $342.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $355.55.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analysts' expectations of $961.04 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pool will post 11.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 shares were sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total transaction of $3,460,000.00. Following the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Pool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $368.00.

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.