Primecap Management Co. CA Decreases Holdings in Leslie’s, Inc. $LESL

Primecap Management Co. CA lowered its stake in shares of Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) by 95.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 65,556 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,245,574 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Leslie’s were worth $361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LESL. Ariel Investments LLC boosted its stake in Leslie’s by 4.7% in the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 60,903,406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,573,000 after acquiring an additional 2,725,991 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 61.3% during the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 3,570,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,700 shares during the last quarter. King Street Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $630,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Leslie’s by 923.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,254,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131,647 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc lifted its stake in Leslie’s by 87.1% in the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,016,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 473,148 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LESL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $1.00 target price on Leslie’s and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $3.75 price target on Leslie’s and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Zacks Research lowered Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a research note on Friday, December 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, December 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $6.55.

Leslie’s Price Performance

Leslie’s stock opened at $1.10 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.25 million, a P/E ratio of -0.04 and a beta of 1.30. Leslie’s, Inc. has a one year low of $0.87 and a one year high of $21.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.50.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The company reported ($5.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($4.20) by ($1.04). The company had revenue of $147.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $161.19 million.

Leslie’s Company Profile

Leslie’s, Inc (NASDAQ: LESL) is the largest direct-to-consumer retailer of swimming pool supplies and related equipment in the United States. Through a network of more than 900 company-operated stores and a robust e-commerce platform, the company offers a comprehensive range of pool chemicals, cleaning tools, pumps, filters, heaters and pool accessories. In addition to product retailing, Leslie’s provides in-store and in-home water testing services, equipment installation, repair and ongoing maintenance programs designed to support both residential and commercial pool owners.

Founded in 1963 in North Miami Beach, Florida, Leslie’s has grown from a single neighborhood pool-supply shop into a national specialty retailer.