Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) Short Interest Down 6.7% in September

by · The Markets Daily

Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 22,200,000 shares, a decrease of 6.7% from the September 15th total of 23,790,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,450,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days. Approximately 12.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $4.00 price objective on shares of Leslie’s in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $5.25 to $2.50 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Leslie’s from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Leslie’s has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.96.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Leslie’s

Leslie’s Stock Performance

Shares of LESL opened at $2.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $2.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.87. The company has a market cap of $493.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.17. Leslie’s has a 52-week low of $2.42 and a 52-week high of $8.21.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. Leslie’s had a net margin of 0.22% and a negative return on equity of 6.11%. The firm had revenue of $569.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Leslie’s will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leslie’s

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LESL. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 7.4% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 35,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 2,473 shares during the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its position in shares of Leslie’s by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 160,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 2,710 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 82,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Leslie’s by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 81,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 4,798 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Leslie’s by 1.5% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 378,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,460,000 after purchasing an additional 5,728 shares during the last quarter.

Leslie’s Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Leslie’s, Inc operates as a direct-to-consumer pool and spa care brand in the United States. The company markets and sells pool and spa supplies and related products and services. It also offers various pool and spa maintenance items, such as chemicals, equipment and parts, cleaning and maintenance equipment, safety, recreational, and fitness related products.

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