Values First Advisors Inc. Sells 574 Shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Values First Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 23.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,831 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 574 shares during the quarter. Values First Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Pool were worth $730,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Pool by 0.5% during the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 5,687 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,025,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Pool by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Pool by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,695 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,950,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pool by 12.2% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 321 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in shares of Pool by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 127 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL traded down $11.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $403.50. 711,594 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 324,660. Pool Co. has a 12-month low of $307.77 and a 12-month high of $422.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 30.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $393.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $368.53.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.02. Pool had a return on equity of 37.94% and a net margin of 9.44%. The firm had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Pool Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Pool’s payout ratio is currently 33.03%.

Insider Activity

In other Pool news, General Counsel Jennifer M. Neil sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $401.00, for a total value of $441,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 8,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,457,422. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

POOL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TheStreet lowered Pool from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Pool in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Pool from $407.00 to $436.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Pool from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $371.00 to $368.00 in a research note on Friday, December 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Pool in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $388.63.

Pool 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.