Weiss Asset Management LP Makes New Investment in Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Leslie’s, Inc. (NASDAQ:LESL) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 2,047,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,470,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Leslie’s by 46.5% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 36,601,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,360,000 after buying an additional 11,618,490 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,406,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,564,000 after acquiring an additional 601,177 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Leslie’s by 121.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 5,569,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,599,000 after acquiring an additional 3,052,539 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Leslie’s by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,877,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,093,000 after buying an additional 345,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Leslie’s by 24.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,096,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,785,000 after buying an additional 410,128 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LESL shares. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Leslie’s in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $4.00 to $3.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on shares of Leslie’s from $4.00 to $3.75 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.61.

Leslie’s Stock Up 6.3 %

Shares of LESL stock opened at $2.36 on Friday. Leslie’s, Inc. has a one year low of $2.20 and a one year high of $8.21. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $2.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.35.

Leslie’s (NASDAQ:LESL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.09). Leslie’s had a negative return on equity of 6.11% and a negative net margin of 1.76%. The company had revenue of $397.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $405.19 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.14 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Leslie’s, Inc. will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

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.