Analyst Consensus ?
ConsensusBuy20 ratings
Bullish1155.0%
Neutral840.0%
Bearish15.0%
Pool Corporation · POOL · FY2026 Q1 · Calendar Q2 2026
Pool Corp Beats Q1 Estimates on 6% Sales Growth; Holds FY2026 EPS Guide
Pool Corp's installed base of roughly 5.5M in-ground pools keeps maintenance and remodel demand resilient even as new-pool construction stays soft, supporting stable but only low single-digit earnings growth. Q1 delivered a beat (EPS $1.43 vs. $1.35 est., revenue $1.14B vs. $1.10B), but the stock fell about 2% on the report and drifted roughly -20% afterward, a sign the market is focused on normalization of pricing contributions and a muted growth ceiling rather than the beat. Management held FY2026 EPS guidance at $10.87-$11.17. The bull case rests on private-label chemistry, POOL360 adoption and expense moderation; the bear case rests on discretionary weakness, early-buy pull-forward and margin dilution. On balance, evidence this quarter supports resilient demand but not accelerating top-line growth.
Reported Before market openNASDAQIndustrials
$5.89B market cap
100quality score
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensus
Reported EPS
$1.43
Consensus $1.35
EPS surprise
+5.9%
Reported versus consensus
Reported revenue
$1.14B
Consensus $1.10B
Revenue surprise
+3.6%
Reported versus consensus
Market reaction
prior-close to event-session close
Stock move
-2.4%
Event window
SPY move
-0.4%
Same window
Abnormal move
-2.0%
Stock minus SPY
Volume
1.8×
Versus trailing sessions
Subsequent drift
-20.5%
Up to 20 sessions
POOLSPY benchmark
Ask FN2 about POOL FY2026 Q1
Transcript, numbers and history already loaded
Why did POOL fall 2.4% after beating EPS estimates in FY2026 Q1?What changed in POOL's guidance and outlook in FY2026 Q1?Give me the bull and bear case for POOL after FY2026 Q1 earnings.
Free account. Your question opens in FN2 with this report's transcript and numbers attached.
Transcript intelligence
What changed
A sequential acceleration in reported sales: after a flat FY2025 (revenue of ~$5.3B) where maintenance offset weak new builds, Q1 2026 delivered 6% sales growth and a 7% rise in operating income, with EPS of $1.43 beating the $1.35 estimate by about 6%. Management held full-year EPS guidance at $10.87-$11.17 (versus $10.85-$11.15 prior) and kept a low single-digit sales outlook. Inventory rose 14% YoY to ~$1.7B on deliberate early-buy positioning, and seven new Pinch A Penny franchise locations opened. Despite the beat, the stock closed down about 2% on report day and drifted roughly -20% in the weeks after.
Guidance delta
Maintained. Management reiterated full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $10.87-$11.17 (a slightly narrowed band versus the prior $10.85-$11.15) with a low single-digit net sales growth outlook; the Q1 report did not change the full-year picture.
Key takeaways
- Q1 net sales grew 6%, with revenue of $1.14B beating the ~$1.10B consensus; EPS of $1.43 beat the $1.35 estimate, or about +5.9%.
- Operating income rose 7% with 10 bps of margin expansion, helped by pricing, volume and early-buy activity.
- Full-year EPS guidance of $10.87-$11.17 is unchanged, with a low single-digit sales growth outlook maintained.
- Growth is anchored on the ~5.5M installed in-ground pool base: maintenance, remodel, equipment replacement, private-label chemistry and the POOL360 digital platform.
- Despite the beat, the stock closed down about 2% on report day and drifted roughly -20% in the weeks after.
Management priorities
- Execute on installed-base growth: maintenance, remodel and equipment replacement cycles
- Scale the POOL360 digital platform and deepen private-label/exclusive brands
- Expand the Pinch A Penny franchise network (seven new locations in Q1)
- Moderate operating expense growth by leveraging existing greenfield locations
- Maintain disciplined capital allocation, including share repurchases ($64M bought in Q1, $271M remaining)
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Estimate
Beat
Miss
Match
Analyst 52W Price Targets
$161.99Current
$185Low
$272.67Average
$460High
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Sep 25, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Sep 11, 2026 |
| Stephens & Co. | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Aug 20, 2026 |
| Stifel | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Oppenheimer | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jul 24, 2026 |
| B of A Securities | Underperform | Underperform | Maintain | Jul 20, 2026 |
| Baird | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 20, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jan 13, 2026 |
| CFRA | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Dec 23, 2025 |
| William Blair | Market Perform | Outperform | Downgrade | Oct 15, 2025 |
| Loop Capital | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Oct 25, 2024 |
| Deutsche Bank | Hold | Buy | Downgrade | Dec 8, 2023 |
| Jefferies | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Feb 13, 2023 |
| Keybanc | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jan 25, 2023 |
| Longbow Research | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Apr 19, 2022 |
| Sidoti & Co. | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Oct 8, 2020 |
| Johnson Rice | Buy | Accumulate | Maintain | Jul 24, 2017 |
| Wunderlich Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Feb 14, 2014 |
| Wunderlich | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Feb 14, 2014 |
| Wedbush | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Jul 17, 2012 |
| Morgan Keegan | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 17, 2012 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $161.99. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo | Sam Reid | $185 | $175.76 | +14.2% | Sep 11, 2026 |
| D.A. Davidson | Garik Shmois | $210 | $188.24 | +29.6% | Aug 24, 2026 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $185 | $181.14 | +14.2% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Oppenheimer | Analyst unavailable | $227 | $183.14 | +40.1% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $189 | $183.33 | +16.7% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $260 | $183.33 | +60.5% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Stephens | Trey Grooms | $225 | $183.33 | +38.9% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Andrew Carter | $235 | $219.47 | +45.1% | Jul 6, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $210 | $187.77 | +29.6% | May 11, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $240 | $229.14 | +48.2% | Apr 24, 2026 |
| Oppenheimer | Scott Schneeberger | $280 | $219.04 | +72.9% | Feb 24, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Andrew Carter | $232 | $221.62 | +43.2% | Feb 23, 2026 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $246 | $218.36 | +51.9% | Feb 20, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | David Manthey | $300 | $218.36 | +85.2% | Feb 20, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Sam Reid | $275 | $267.33 | +69.8% | Feb 11, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $310 | $258.46 | +91.4% | Jan 13, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $320 | $252.28 | +97.5% | Jan 12, 2026 |
| CFRA | Analyst unavailable | $304 | $232.3 | +87.7% | Dec 22, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Sam Reid | $250 | $240.24 | +54.3% | Dec 15, 2025 |
| Robert W. Baird | David Manthey | $345 | $300.01 | +113.0% | Oct 24, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $360 | $300.31 | +122.2% | Oct 23, 2025 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Andrew Carter | $300 | $291.59 | +85.2% | Apr 25, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Sam Reid | $300 | $291.59 | +85.2% | Apr 25, 2025 |
| Oppenheimer | Scott Schneeberger | $386 | $370.86 | +138.3% | Oct 28, 2024 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Andrew Carter | $335 | $377.33 | +106.8% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs | Susan Maklari | $415 | $377.33 | +156.2% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| Stephens | Trey Grooms | $400 | $377.33 | +146.9% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | David Manthey | $408 | $364.68 | +151.9% | Oct 16, 2024 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Andrew Carter | $310 | $336.43 | +91.4% | Jul 18, 2024 |
| Oppenheimer | Scott Schneeberger | $356 | $310.74 | +119.8% | Jun 25, 2024 |
| Loop Capital Markets | Garik Shmois | $305 | $337.91 | +88.3% | Jun 25, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | David Manthey | $305 | $337.91 | +88.3% | Jun 25, 2024 |
| Stephens | Trey Grooms | $350 | $337.91 | +116.1% | Jun 25, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | David Manthey | $380 | $357.65 | +134.6% | May 29, 2024 |
| Oppenheimer | Scott Schneeberger | $436 | $414.62 | +169.2% | Mar 28, 2024 |
| Stephens | Trey Grooms | $340 | $299.2 | +109.9% | Oct 19, 2022 |
| Stephens | Analyst unavailable | $460 | $426.54 | +184.0% | Apr 27, 2022 |
| Loop Capital Markets | Garik Shmois | $465 | $427.19 | +187.1% | Apr 22, 2022 |
Track every rating change on POOL the moment it posts. Free to start.
Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationPool Corporation, established in 1993 and based in Covington, Louisiana, serves as a leading wholesale distributor of swimming pool essentials, outdoor living accessories, and related recreational merchandise. Operating extensively across the United States and globally, the company supported its diverse clientele through 410 sales centers spanning North America, Europe, and Australia as of March 2022. Its comprehensive product portfolio encompasses a broad array of upkeep items like chemicals, general provisions, and pool accouterments; components for servicing and replacing critical pool machinery such as purification systems, heating units, circulation pumps, and lighting fixtures; and structural elements including complete fiberglass pools, luxury spas, and comprehensive pre-packaged pool kits designed for both subterranean and elevated installations, encompassing structural walls, liners, support braces, and coping. Furthermore, Pool Corp.…
Historical context
All POOL earningsIndustrials peers this season
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Latest beats and misses
Who reports nextBeat on EPS
- SNXFY2026 Q3 · September 24, 2026+20.9% EPS-9.9% move
- DRIFY2027 Q1 · September 24, 20260.0% EPS-3.0% move
- CTASFY2027 Q1 · September 23, 2026+3.0% EPS-3.4% move
- PAYXFY2027 Q1 · September 23, 2026+1.5% EPS-8.8% move
- GISFY2027 Q1 · September 23, 2026+4.6% EPS+1.0% move
- AZOFY2026 Q4 · September 22, 2026+3.6% EPS+3.3% move
Get the POOL recap when the next report posts
One email per quarter with the scorecard, the market reaction and what changed on the call. No account needed.
Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:12.209961+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-09-25T13:01:37.574294+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-09-25T13:01:37.571475+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-09-25. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.