Brokerages Set Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) Target Price at $2.85

Shares of Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $2.85.

Several equities analysts have commented on LESL shares. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $3.00 price objective (up from $2.00) on shares of Leslie’s in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $1.00 target price on shares of Leslie’s and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $4.00 to $3.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Leslie’s from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th.

Leslie’s Price Performance

NASDAQ:LESL opened at $3.09 on Friday. Leslie’s has a one year low of $0.87 and a one year high of $18.00. The company has a market cap of $28.92 million, a P/E ratio of -0.10 and a beta of 1.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $1.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1.84.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($5.36) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($4.41) by ($0.95). The business had revenue of $184.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $162.48 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Leslie’s will post -2.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leslie’s

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Leslie’s by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 102,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 14,840 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Barclays PLC bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Clearfield Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the third quarter valued at about $170,000.

About Leslie’s

Leslie’s, Inc (NASDAQ: LESL) is the largest direct-to-consumer retailer of swimming pool supplies and related equipment in the United States. Through a network of more than 900 company-operated stores and a robust e-commerce platform, the company offers a comprehensive range of pool chemicals, cleaning tools, pumps, filters, heaters and pool accessories. In addition to product retailing, Leslie’s provides in-store and in-home water testing services, equipment installation, repair and ongoing maintenance programs designed to support both residential and commercial pool owners.

Founded in 1963 in North Miami Beach, Florida, Leslie’s has grown from a single neighborhood pool-supply shop into a national specialty retailer.