Loop Capital Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) Stock Price

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) had its target price decreased by Loop Capital from $4.00 to $1.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Loop Capital currently has a hold rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on LESL. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Leslie’s from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America downgraded Leslie’s from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $2.65 to $1.40 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Leslie’s from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $3.00 to $1.25 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Leslie’s currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.27.

Leslie’s Trading Up 4.7 %

LESL opened at $0.73 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $0.72 and a 200-day moving average of $1.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $135.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.88 and a beta of 1.32. Leslie’s has a 1-year low of $0.51 and a 1-year high of $6.02.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.02). Leslie’s had a negative net margin of 2.13% and a negative return on equity of 6.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leslie’s

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lind Value II ApS bought a new stake in Leslie’s during the fourth quarter worth about $10,258,000. Ariel Investments LLC grew its position in Leslie’s by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 50,527,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,677,000 after acquiring an additional 3,975,268 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Leslie’s by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,436,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,662,000 after purchasing an additional 2,655,795 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in Leslie’s in the 4th quarter valued at $5,838,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in Leslie’s in the fourth quarter worth $2,774,000.

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.