Stifel Nicolaus Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) Stock

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) had its price objective increased by Stifel Nicolaus from $15.50 to $16.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the stock.

HAYW has been the topic of several other reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Hayward from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Hayward from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp dropped their price target on Hayward from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.80.

Hayward Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of HAYW stock opened at $16.26 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. Hayward has a twelve month low of $9.80 and a twelve month high of $16.85. The company has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.64, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.21.

Hayward (NYSE:HAYW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.02. Hayward had a return on equity of 9.66% and a net margin of 9.06%. The business had revenue of $227.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $222.88 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.08 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Hayward will post 0.59 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hayward

In other news, CEO Kevin Holleran sold 42,857 shares of Hayward stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.29, for a total transaction of $612,426.53. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 522,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,470,797.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hayward

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hayward by 7.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 668,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,253,000 after acquiring an additional 44,978 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Hayward in the third quarter worth about $202,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in shares of Hayward by 8.9% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 81,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,242,000 after acquiring an additional 6,596 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Hayward in the third quarter worth about $426,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Hayward by 7.5% in the third quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 68,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,052,000 after acquiring an additional 4,800 shares during the last quarter.

About Hayward

Hayward Holdings, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of pool equipment and associated automation systems in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers pool equipment, including pumps, filters, robotics, suction and pressure cleaners, gas heaters and heat pumps, water features and landscape lighting, water sanitizers, salt chlorine generators, safety equipment, and in-floor automated cleaning systems, as well as LED illumination solutions.