Norden Group LLC Cuts Position in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Norden Group LLC cut its holdings in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) by 29.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,121 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,287 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Pool were worth $1,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Pool in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Pool in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Pool by 76.9% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 138 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Pool during the third quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Pool during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. 98.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pool Stock Performance

NASDAQ POOL opened at $347.00 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $13.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.03. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $342.99 and its 200-day moving average is $355.55. Pool Co. has a 12-month low of $293.51 and a 12-month high of $422.73.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.08. Pool had a net margin of 8.18% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $987.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $961.04 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Pool Co. will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. Pool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on POOL. StockNews.com cut shares of Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $368.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total value of $3,460,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,651,642. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.