Pool Corporation (POOL) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
POOL is Pool Corporation, the world's largest wholesale distributor of swimming pool and backyard products, and investors treat it as a high-quality compounder whose fortunes track pool construction cycles and the steadier maintenance business. It trades as a distribution-scale play on the installed base of US pools rather than a fast-growth story.
POOL stock price
As of 2026-07-16, Pool Corporation (POOL) last closed at $206.46, down 29.5% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $175.24 and $333.62.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or Pool Corporation's investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does Pool Corporation (POOL) do?
Pool Corporation (Nasdaq: POOL) is the largest wholesale distributor of swimming pool and related outdoor-living products in the world, operating roughly 455 sales centers across North America, Europe, and Australia and distributing more than 200,000 products to about 125,000 wholesale customers. Its catalog spans pumps, filters, heaters, cleaners, chemicals, repair parts, plus irrigation and landscape-maintenance goods, and it primarily sells to pool builders, retailers, and service professionals rather than consumers. A large share of demand comes from non-discretionary maintenance and repair of the existing installed base of pools, which gives the business a recurring, weather- and season-driven revenue stream on top of the more cyclical new-pool-construction and renovation segments.
The investment picture centers on POOL's dominant distribution scale, pricing discipline, and consistent free-cash-flow generation, offset by sensitivity to housing, discretionary spending, and interest rates that pressure new pool builds. After the pandemic-era construction boom faded, new-build volumes have been soft, so growth has leaned on maintenance products, modest price increases, and share gains. Management has continued raising the dividend and repurchasing shares, and the stock is often viewed as a quality-compounder that investors weigh on valuation relative to its slower current growth rate. Walnut is not an investment adviser; this is descriptive context, not a recommendation.
What's driving Pool Corporation (POOL)?
1. Recurring maintenance demand
A large and growing installed base of pools requires ongoing chemicals, parts, and equipment replacement regardless of the economy. This non-discretionary maintenance revenue provides a stabilizing floor that has carried results while new construction stays soft, and it grows as more pools age into repair and replacement cycles.
2. Distribution scale and share gains
With roughly 455 sales centers and unmatched breadth of inventory, POOL can serve pool professionals faster and more completely than regional competitors. Its scale supports better vendor terms, private-label expansion, and technology tools for contractors, and management continues to open and acquire sales centers to consolidate a fragmented market.
3. Capital returns and cash generation
POOL generates steady free cash flow and returns much of it through a rising dividend (increased for 16 consecutive years) and ongoing share buybacks. The board recently raised the quarterly dividend and expanded the repurchase authorization, underscoring a shareholder-return posture that supplements modest organic growth.
4. Eventual construction and renovation recovery
New pool construction and large renovation projects are cyclical and interest-rate sensitive, so a normalization in housing activity and financing costs could reaccelerate the higher-ticket, higher-margin discretionary side of demand. That recovery is a key swing factor in POOL's earnings trajectory over coming years.
What are the risks to Pool Corporation (POOL)?
New pool construction and remodel demand are discretionary and highly sensitive to housing turnover, consumer confidence, and interest rates, so a prolonged high-rate or weak-housing environment can keep the cyclical segment depressed. Weather is a meaningful variable, with cold or wet seasons compressing pool-season demand and hot dry seasons boosting it. Gross margin can be pressured by product mix, inventory and early-buy dynamics, and inflation in freight and product costs. The company also faces competition from other national distributors, regional players, and mass-market and large specialty retailers. Because POOL is often valued as a premium compounder, a slower-for-longer growth backdrop could weigh on its multiple.
How is Pool Corporation (POOL) valued? (approximate, JULY 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Pool Corporation's investor relations page or your broker.
- Revenue (FY2025): ~$5.3B
- Net income (FY2025): ~$406M
- Q1 2026 net sales: ~$1.14B (up ~6%)
- Market cap: ~$6.6B
- P/E (trailing): ~16x
- Dividend yield: ~2.3%
POOL posted FY2025 net sales of about $5.3 billion and net income near $406 million, and Q1 2026 sales rose roughly 6% to about $1.14 billion with EPS ahead of expectations. Management guided 2026 diluted EPS to roughly $10.85 to $11.15, reflecting expectations for modest sales growth. The stock trades at a mid-teens trailing earnings multiple, well below its pandemic-boom peak valuation.
Who competes with Pool Corporation (POOL)?
National pool distributors and retailers
Leslie's, Inc. and other national and regional wholesale distributors and large specialty pool retailers compete for the same contractor and service-pro customers, though POOL's sales-center footprint and product breadth make it the scale leader in wholesale distribution.
Pool equipment manufacturers
Pentair, Hayward Industries, and Fluidra (which owns Zodiac) make the pumps, filters, heaters, and automation POOL distributes; they are key suppliers but can also reach customers directly, and their pricing and product cycles influence POOL's margins and mix.
Mass-market and direct channels
Store-based and internet mass retailers and manufacturers selling directly to large buyers compete on price for commodity chemicals and accessories, pressuring the lower-margin, more standardized portion of POOL's assortment.
How to invest in Pool Corporation (POOL)
There are three common ways to get POOL exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic basket, so POOL sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the basket route. Describe a thesis where POOL fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
The bottom line on Pool Corporation (POOL)
POOL is a market-leading pool-products distributor whose recurring maintenance revenue cushions a soft new-construction cycle, and its investment case rests on scale, cash returns, and the durability of that installed base.
More on Pool Corporation (POOL)
Whether POOL is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is POOL a buy?, and where the stock could go from here in the POOL stock forecast.
For income investors, whether POOL pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does POOL pay a dividend?
Build a basket around POOL with Walnut
Use Pool Corporation as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
What does Pool Corporation do?
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Pool Corporation is the world's largest wholesale distributor of swimming pool and related backyard products. It operates about 455 sales centers and supplies pumps, filters, heaters, chemicals, parts, and irrigation and landscape goods to roughly 125,000 wholesale customers such as builders, retailers, and service professionals.
Is POOL a cyclical stock?
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Partly. New pool construction and large renovations are discretionary and sensitive to housing activity and interest rates, which makes that portion cyclical. However, a large share of revenue comes from recurring maintenance and repair of existing pools, which is steadier and helps cushion downturns in the construction cycle.
How did POOL perform in its latest quarter?
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In Q1 2026, Pool Corporation reported net sales of about $1.14 billion, up roughly 6% year over year, with EPS of about $1.46 that beat analyst expectations. Growth was led by the maintenance side of the business while new construction remained soft.
Does POOL pay a dividend?
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Yes. Pool Corporation pays a quarterly dividend, recently raised to $1.30 per share, for an annual rate around $5.20 and a yield near 2.3%. The company has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years and also buys back shares.
Who are Pool Corporation's competitors?
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POOL competes with national and regional distributors and specialty retailers like Leslie's, with equipment manufacturers such as Pentair, Hayward, and Fluidra that also sell directly, and with mass-market and online retailers on commodity products. Its scale and sales-center density are its main competitive advantages.
What is POOL's valuation?
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As of mid-2026, POOL carries a market capitalization around $6.6 billion and trades at roughly a mid-teens trailing price-to-earnings ratio, well below its pandemic-era peak multiple. Management guided 2026 diluted EPS to about $10.85 to $11.15.
What are the main risks to POOL?
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Key risks include weak new pool construction during high interest rates and soft housing, weather that shortens pool seasons, margin pressure from mix and input costs, and competition from distributors, manufacturers, and retailers. A slower growth backdrop can also compress the stock's premium valuation.
How can someone invest in POOL?
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POOL trades on the Nasdaq and can be bought through any brokerage account, either as an individual holding or as part of a diversified or thematic basket. Walnut is not an investment adviser, so any decision should reflect your own research, goals, and risk tolerance.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with Pool Corporation's investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.