Atala Financial Inc Purchases Shares of 86 Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL)

Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in Pool Co. (NASDAQ:POOL) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 86 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $29,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased a new stake in Pool during the 3rd quarter worth $152,249,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Pool during the 4th quarter worth $116,833,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Pool by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,260,313 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $474,886,000 after buying an additional 232,914 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in Pool during the 3rd quarter worth $40,750,000. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in Pool by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 274,165 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $93,474,000 after buying an additional 69,435 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.99% of the company’s stock.

Pool Price Performance

POOL opened at $327.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 2.05. Pool Co. has a 1-year low of $293.51 and a 1-year high of $420.98. The company has a 50-day moving average of $343.04 and a 200-day moving average of $355.17. The company has a market capitalization of $12.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.01, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $0.97 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $961.04 million. Equities analysts expect that Pool Co. will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. Pool’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

POOL has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Pool from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $368.00.

Insider Activity at Pool

In other Pool news, Director De La Mesa Manuel J. Perez sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.00, for a total transaction of $3,460,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 62,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,651,642. The trade was a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

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.