Short Interest in Hayward Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HAYW) Decreases By 20.5%

Hayward Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HAYW) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,630,000 shares, a decline of 20.5% from the October 31st total of 10,850,000 shares. Currently, 4.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,000,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Hayward Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:HAYW traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $16.16. 1,038,170 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,539,017. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.19. Hayward has a 1-year low of $11.55 and a 1-year high of $16.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company’s 50 day moving average is $15.52 and its 200-day moving average is $14.36.

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.01. Hayward had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 9.93%. The business had revenue of $227.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $222.88 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.08 earnings per share. Hayward’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hayward will post 0.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Eifion Jones sold 75,000 shares of Hayward stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.11, for a total value of $1,208,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 258,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,170,927.33. This trade represents a 22.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kevin Holleran sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.96, for a total transaction of $1,596,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 522,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,343,872.04. This represents a 16.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 217,857 shares of company stock worth $3,416,677. 3.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hayward

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Hayward by 2,710.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,141 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Hayward in the second quarter worth $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Hayward in the third quarter valued at $43,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hayward during the third quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Hayward during the 2nd quarter worth about $64,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HAYW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Hayward from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Hayward from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Hayward from $15.50 to $16.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Hayward from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hayward presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.80.

Hayward Company Profile

Hayward Holdings, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of pool equipment and associated automation systems in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers pool equipment, including pumps, filters, robotics, suction and pressure cleaners, gas heaters and heat pumps, water features and landscape lighting, water sanitizers, salt chlorine generators, safety equipment, and in-floor automated cleaning systems, as well as LED illumination solutions.