By Rob Curran
Pool's third-quarter earnings and sales fell as the swimming-pool installer warned that property owners were cutting back on the discretionary expense, in the latest sign of a housing-market malaise.
The Covington, La., distributor of swimming pools and related services, logged earnings of $125.7 million, or $3.27 a share, down from $137.8 million, or $3.51 a share, a year earlier. Excluding certain tax benefits, Pool's adjusted third-quarter earnings were $3.26, topping the average Wall Street target of $3.16 a share, according to FactSet.
Third-quarter sales fell 3% to $1.43 billion, slightly exceeding the mean analyst estimate of $1.403 billion.
Sales during the quarter were "supported by steady demand for maintenance products while the discretionary portions of our business continued to see pressure," President and Chief Executive Peter Arvan, said in a statement.
Used-home sales are on track for the lowest turnover since 1995, according to recent U.S. data. A spike in mortgage rates and persistently high home prices have slowed activity, reducing appetites for property upgrades such as swimming pools.
Pool reiterated its forecast for 2024 earnings in a range between $11.06 and $11.46 a share.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 24, 2024 07:23 ET (11:23 GMT)
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