Clearline Capital LP Takes Position in Pool Corporation $POOL

Clearline Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 32,355 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $7,401,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in POOL. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Pool by 2,435.4% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,290,958 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $295,307,000 after acquiring an additional 1,240,041 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Pool in the fourth quarter worth about $97,612,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Pool by 16.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,563,373 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $794,825,000 after acquiring an additional 357,643 shares in the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP purchased a new position in Pool in the fourth quarter worth about $68,625,000. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in Pool by 254.6% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 339,716 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $77,710,000 after acquiring an additional 243,907 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Key Pool News

Here are the key news stories impacting Pool this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Recent articles are centered on the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool algae issue and related political coverage, which is unrelated to Pool Corporation’s business and is unlikely to have a direct impact on POOL shares.
• Neutral Sentiment: No company-specific earnings, guidance, analyst, or acquisition news was included in the latest headlines, so the stock’s move appears more likely tied to broader market sentiment than a fundamental update for Pool Corporation.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on POOL. Zacks Research upgraded Pool from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Pool from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings lowered Pool from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Pool from $346.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Pool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $261.38.

Pool Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:POOL opened at $194.34 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10. Pool Corporation has a 52 week low of $172.68 and a 52 week high of $345.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $197.94 and a 200 day moving average of $222.02.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Pool had a net margin of 7.57% and a return on equity of 32.37%. Pool’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. Pool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.870-11.170 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Pool Corporation will post 11.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pool Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Pool’s payout ratio is presently 47.84%.

Pool declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Pool news, Director John E. Stokely purchased 1,000 shares of Pool stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $193.06 per share, with a total value of $193,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 16,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,133,363.80. This trade represents a 6.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David G. Whalen purchased 525 shares of Pool stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $190.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,981.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,936 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,701,771.84. This represents a 6.24% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired a total of 21,989 shares of company stock valued at $4,042,747 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

About Pool

Pool Corporation is a leading wholesale distributor of swimming pool supplies, equipment, and related outdoor living products. Headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, the company serves a diverse customer base that includes service professionals, independent retailers, high-volume builders, and national retail chains. Pool Corporation’s extensive branch network enables it to maintain strong local customer relationships while leveraging its scale to source products efficiently from manufacturers around the world.

The company’s product portfolio spans pool and spa chemicals, water treatment equipment, pumps, filters, heaters, automation and control systems, liners, safety covers, and cleaning accessories.