Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) Shares Acquired by Gitterman Wealth Management LLC

Gitterman Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 52.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,127 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the quarter. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Pool were worth $385,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in POOL. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Pool by 11.1% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 739 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Pool by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 29,605 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $11,155,000 after purchasing an additional 1,173 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in Pool by 77.6% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Pool by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,601 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,110,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in Pool by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 59,644 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $22,474,000 after purchasing an additional 838 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Pool

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 stock was sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total value of $3,460,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 62,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This trade represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

POOL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on 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 cut Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $368.00.

Pool Price Performance

POOL stock opened at $327.21 on Friday. Pool Co. has a 52-week low of $293.51 and a 52-week high of $420.98. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $343.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $355.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.08. Pool had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 8.18%. The business had revenue of $987.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $961.04 million. Equities research analysts expect that Pool Co. will post 11.32 EPS for the current year.

Pool Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. Pool’s payout ratio is currently 42.55%.

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.