Pool Corp. holds EPS steady at $3.40 as sales growth speeds up, confirms 2026 outlook

Pool Corp. grew sales faster in the third quarter than in the second, but thinner margins left earnings flat at $3.40 a diluted share, and the pool-supply distributor stuck with its full-year forecast.

Net sales rose 4% to $1.5 billion, accelerating from 2% growth in the second quarter, according to the earnings release Pool filed with an 8-K on Thursday. The company credited roughly 3 points of growth to price, plus stronger maintenance activity and growth in building materials.

Margins slip

Gross margin fell 60 basis points to 29.0%, which the company tied to higher inbound freight costs, customer mix and a tough comparison with last year's mid-season price increases. Operating expenses rose 5% to $264.1 million.

That pushed operating income down 3% to $172.2 million, and net income fell 3% to $123.0 million. Diluted EPS was unchanged at $3.40; excluding a tax-accounting item, it was $3.40 versus $3.39.

"We delivered solid results in the third quarter of 2026 as we moved through the end of the peak selling season," President and CEO John B. Watwood said in the release.

Outlook and cash returns

Pool confirmed its 2026 guidance of $10.66 to $10.96 in diluted EPS, or $10.87 to $11.17 on an adjusted basis that excludes CEO transition costs.

Operating cash flow jumped 47% to $419.8 million in the first nine months, while inventory fell 3% from a year earlier. Pool returned $158.7 million to shareholders through buybacks and dividends in the quarter alone, and $338.1 million year to date. The quarterly dividend stands at $1.30 a share, up 4% from a year ago.

By the numbers

• Net sales: $1.5 billion, up 4%
• Gross margin: 29.0%, down 60 basis points
• Diluted EPS: $3.40, flat
• 2026 adjusted EPS guidance: $10.87 to $11.17, confirmed
• Nine-month operating cash flow: $419.8 million, up 47%

Sources

1. Pool Corporation, Form 8-K (Items 2.02 and 7.01) with Exhibit 99.1 earnings release dated Oct. 22, 2026, accession 0001193125-26-428428

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