Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $3.96.

LESL has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Leslie’s from $6.40 to $5.15 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Leslie’s from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the company from $5.25 to $2.50 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Leslie’s from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Leslie’s from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th.

Leslie’s Price Performance

LESL stock opened at $2.75 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $508.04 million, a PE ratio of 34.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.17. Leslie’s has a 12 month low of $2.42 and a 12 month high of $8.21. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $2.88 and its 200 day moving average is $3.77.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $569.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.99 million. Leslie’s had a net margin of 0.22% and a negative return on equity of 6.11%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Leslie’s will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leslie’s

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ariel Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 36,601,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,360,000 after purchasing an additional 11,618,490 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Leslie’s by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,116,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,097,000 after acquiring an additional 492,416 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Leslie’s by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,320,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,581,000 after acquiring an additional 156,938 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its position in Leslie’s by 12.4% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,519,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,375,000 after acquiring an additional 500,292 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Leslie’s by 13.6% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,877,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,093,000 after purchasing an additional 345,064 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.