Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) Stock Price Up 9.4%

Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL)’s share price shot up 9.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $4.78 and last traded at $4.77. 3,110,895 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 0% from the average session volume of 3,124,243 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.36.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Leslie’s Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $6.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.14. The firm has a market cap of $869.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.06.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $169.17 million. On average, analysts expect that Leslie’s, Inc. will post 0.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Leslie’s

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its position in Leslie’s by 49.0% during 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 during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leslie’s by 26.6% in the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,018,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,771,000 after buying an additional 845,615 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the third quarter worth about $534,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Leslie’s by 16.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 990,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,606,000 after acquiring an additional 140,932 shares during the period. Finally, Ariel Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Leslie’s by 50.6% in the third quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 24,987,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,429,000 after acquiring an additional 8,398,488 shares during the period.

Leslie’s Company Profile

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.