Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Buys New Shares in Pool Corporation $POOL

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,544 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $811,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pool during the first quarter valued at approximately $400,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 237.9% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 17,390 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,536,000 after acquiring an additional 12,244 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pool during the first quarter valued at approximately $639,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 164.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 156 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pool by 201.2% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,012 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 1,344 shares during the period. 98.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Pool News

Here are the key news stories impacting Pool this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said Pool Corp. could be a stock that goes higher, which may help sentiment by reinforcing the view that the shares could recover from recent weakness. Jim Cramer: This Real Estate Stock Is ‘Going To Go Higher’
• Positive Sentiment: Argosy Investors disclosed that it added Pool to its portfolio, which can be viewed as a vote of confidence from an institutional investor. Argosy Investors adds Capital One and Pool as it exits multiple holdings
• Neutral Sentiment: There was a note about short interest in Pool rising, but the reported figure was 0 shares, so it does not appear to be a meaningful new signal for the stock.

Insider Activity at Pool

In related news, Director John E. Stokely acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $193.06 per share, for a total transaction of $193,060.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 16,230 shares in the company, valued at $3,133,363.80. This represents a 6.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James D. Hope acquired 464 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $194.41 per share, for a total transaction of $90,206.24. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,039.98. This trade represents a 14.44% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought a total of 26,989 shares of company stock worth $5,067,747 in the last 90 days. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on POOL. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Pool from $240.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Pool from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Pool from $346.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Pool from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Pool from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Pool has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $261.38.

Pool Stock Down 1.8%

Pool stock opened at $181.40 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $201.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $227.10. Pool Corporation has a twelve month low of $172.68 and a twelve month high of $345.00.

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

Pool declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback 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 reacquire up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.84%.

Pool Company Profile

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.