CenterBook Partners LP Makes New Investment in Pool Corporation $POOL

CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Pool Corporation (NASDAQ:POOL) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 14,781 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,381,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caledonia Investments PLC lifted its stake in Pool by 5.2% during the third quarter. Caledonia Investments PLC now owns 160,887 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $49,886,000 after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the last quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth about $4,575,000. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated bought a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth about $2,399,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in Pool by 236.4% during the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 11,146 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,550,000 after purchasing an additional 7,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth about $599,000. Institutional investors own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on POOL. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Pool from $346.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Pool from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered Pool from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research raised Pool from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Pool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $261.38.

Pool Trading Down 2.5%

NASDAQ POOL opened at $180.95 on Tuesday. Pool Corporation has a 1-year low of $172.68 and a 1-year high of $345.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $199.12 and a 200-day moving average of $224.28. The firm has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Pool Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Pool’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.84%.

Pool declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David G. Whalen bought 525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $190.44 per share, with a total value of $99,981.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 8,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,701,771.84. The trade was a 6.24% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $175.95 per share, with a total value of $1,759,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 40,108 shares in the company, valued at $7,057,002.60. The trade was a 33.21% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders purchased 26,989 shares of company stock worth $5,067,747. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Pool 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.