Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) Trading Down 7.7%

Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL)’s stock price was down 7.7% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $3.79 and last traded at $3.82. Approximately 2,040,738 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 34% from the average daily volume of 3,071,100 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LESL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Leslie’s in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $7.00 price target on the stock. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $6.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of Leslie’s in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $5.40 to $6.30 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Leslie’s has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.37.

Leslie’s Trading Down 5.1 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $6.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.18. The company has a market cap of $725.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.90.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.01. Leslie’s had a negative return on equity of 15.00% and a net margin of 1.25%. The business had revenue of $173.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.17 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Leslie’s, Inc. will post 0.23 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leslie’s

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LESL. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Leslie’s by 49.0% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 942,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,337,000 after purchasing an additional 309,911 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its position in Leslie’s by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,018,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,771,000 after acquiring an additional 845,615 shares during the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Leslie’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $534,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Leslie’s by 16.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 990,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,606,000 after purchasing an additional 140,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Leslie’s by 50.6% in the third quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 24,987,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,429,000 after purchasing an additional 8,398,488 shares in the last quarter.

About Leslie’s

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.