Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Shares in Leslie's, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Leslie's, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 810,375 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,807,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.44% of Leslie's as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. IHT Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Leslie's by 52.6% during the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 5,776 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Leslie's by 334.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,714 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 20,564 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Leslie's in the third quarter worth about $117,000. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Leslie's in the third quarter worth about $144,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC increased its stake in Leslie's by 205.3% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 48,496 shares of the company's stock worth $153,000 after buying an additional 32,611 shares during the period.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on LESL. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Leslie's from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America cut Leslie's from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $2.65 to $1.40 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Leslie's from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $3.00 price target on Leslie's in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Leslie's in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $2.65.

Leslie's Price Performance

Shares of LESL stock traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $0.67. 6,132,119 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,689,841. The stock's fifty day moving average is $1.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.12. Leslie's, Inc. has a 52-week low of $0.55 and a 52-week high of $6.02. The stock has a market cap of $123.90 million, a P/E ratio of -4.46 and a beta of 1.30.

Leslie's (NASDAQ:LESL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.21) by ($0.02). Leslie's had a negative net margin of 2.13% and a negative return on equity of 6.11%.

About Leslie's

Leslie's, Inc operates as a direct-to-consumer pool and spa care brand in the United States. The company markets and sells pool and spa supplies and related products and services. It also offers various pool and spa maintenance items, such as chemicals, equipment and parts, cleaning and maintenance equipment, safety, recreational, and fitness related products.