At a glance
Hayward Holdings Inc is worth $3.08B, about 22 times its fiscal 2025 earnings. Revenue grew 6.7% to $1.12B in fiscal 2025, with 13.5% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 5.1% a year. It pays no dividend; it spent $358.3M buying back its shares over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned −3.5% over the past year with dividends reinvested and −8.6% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 64.7% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and is still below its earlier high.
The business in plain English
Founded in 1925, Hayward Holdings designs and makes swimming pool equipment, along with outdoor living and industrial flow control products. Its range includes variable-speed pumps, filters, robotic cleaners, heaters and heat pumps, LED lights, salt chlorine generators and automation linked through its OmniLogic app. The company estimates the world has about 25 million pools. Most revenue comes from existing pools, not new ones. Hayward estimates that aftermarket sales (repairs, replacements and upgrades) are about 85% of net sales. About 51% of sales come from products a pool needs to operate.
Most sales go to distributors, which resell to thousands of pool builders and servicers. The rest go straight to large retailers, builders and buying groups. Builders and servicers strongly shape what pool owners choose. Hayward's two largest customers accounted for about 33% and 12% of net sales in fiscal 2025. Sales peak in the second quarter, before summer, and in the fourth, when an early-order program offers discounts and longer payment terms.
In fiscal 2025 (the year ended December 31, 2025), revenue was $1.12 billion. North America (the US and Canada) produced 85.5% of it and Europe & Rest of World 14.5%. The US alone was 78.7%. Residential pool products made up 90% of sales, commercial pool 5.8% and flow control 4.2%.
Price history
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HAYW -3.5% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By product or service
| Residential pool | $1.01B | 90% |
| Commercial pool | $65.3M | 5.8% |
| Flow control | $46.8M | 4.2% |
By business segment
| NAM | $959.2M | 85.5% |
| E&RW | $163.0M | 14.5% |
By geography
| United States | $883.3M | 78.7% |
| Europe | $97.1M | 8.7% |
| Canada federal | $75.9M | 6.8% |
| Rest of World | $65.9M | 5.9% |
Latest results
- In Q3 FY2026 (ended Sep 26, 2026), revenue was $260.1M, up 6.5% from a year earlier, and net income was $32.4M (+34.9%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $1.12B (+6.7% year over year; +5.1% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a 13.5% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +5.1% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 20.8% good |
| Free cash flow margin | 20.3% good |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | 9.5% watch |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | 4.8% watch |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-481.0M weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $875.4M | $43.3M | $199.6M |
| FY2021 | $1.40B | $203.7M | $163.2M |
| FY2022 | $1.31B | $179.3M | $86.3M |
| FY2023 | $992.5M | $80.7M | $155.6M |
| FY2024 | $1.05B | $118.7M | $189.7M |
| FY2025 | $1.12B | $151.6M | $227.3M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $3.08B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 21.7 |
| Dividend yield | None |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Hayward Holdings’s market value went from $6.09B at the end of 2021 to $3.08B on Oct 28, 2026, down 49%; since the end of 2025 it is down 8%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $3.08B | -8.0% |
| 2025 | $3.35B | +1.7% |
| 2024 | $3.29B | +13.3% |
| 2023 | $2.91B | +46.3% |
| 2022 | $1.99B | -67.4% |
| 2021 | $6.09B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HAYW price data to Oct 28, 2026 | -4.3% | -3.5% | +9.1% | -8.6% | — |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | -4.3% |
| 2025 | +1.1% |
| 2024 | +12.4% |
| 2023 | +44.7% |
| 2022 | -64.2% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 64.7% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 64.7%, not recovered by the end of the data |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-11-03 to 2026-11-03 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 11 sales ($5.9M), 11 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 1, 2026 | Kevin Holleran President and CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $2.1M |
| Jun 30, 2026 | Kevin Holleran President and CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $854K |
| Aug 3, 2026 | Kevin Holleran President and CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $766K |
| Jun 1, 2026 | Kevin Holleran President and CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $722K |
| Sep 1, 2026 | Kevin Holleran President and CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $692K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 11.8% | Sep 30, 2026 |
| FMR LLC | 10.1% | Jul 31, 2026 |
| FIDUCIARY MANAGEMENT INC /WI/ | 5.4% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.13% | Sep 30, 2026 |
| JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | 4.8% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| MSD Capital, L.P. | 2.6% | Sep 30, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in HAYW
| JPSV JPMorgan Active Small Cap Value ETF | 1.18% |
| CAFG Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETF | 0.75% |
| FXR First Trust Industrials/Producer Durables AlphaDEX Fund | 0.47% |
| QSML WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Growth Fund | 0.42% |
| VIOV Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF | 0.32% |
| IJS iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF | 0.3% |
| SLYV SPDR S&P 600 Small Cap Value ETF | 0.3% |
| CSA VictoryShares US Small Cap Volatility Wtd ETF | 0.19% |
What could go wrong
- Two customers drive nearly half of sales. Hayward's two largest customers accounted for about 33% and 12% of net sales in fiscal 2025. Losing either, or a big cut or delay in their orders, could hurt revenue and profits.
- Distributor inventory decisions can swing sales. Most sales go through distributors and retailers whose inventory levels depend on consumer demand, supply lead times and the economy. When they cut back, Hayward's revenue can swing from period to period.
- Seasonality, weather and customer credit. Sales peak in the second and fourth quarters, and cold or rainy weather can stall new pool building. Extended payment terms for early orders raise the money customers owe, adding credit risk.
- Pool spending can drop in downturns. Demand can drop when the economy weakens. Sales have swung sharply: revenue fell from $1.40 billion in fiscal 2021 to $992 million in fiscal 2023. Only about 51% of sales come from must-have products.
- Tariffs, raw materials and key suppliers. Hayward purchases metals such as copper, steel and aluminum, plus plastic resins, and relies on some single- and sole-source suppliers. Tariffs, price spikes or supply gaps could raise costs and squeeze profit margins.
- A sizable debt load. As of September 26, 2026, Hayward had about $956 million of debt and $475 million of cash and investments. Servicing the debt takes significant cash, and loan terms restrict some company actions.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released
- Major agreement signed; New debt or financial obligation
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released
For income and retirement investors
Hayward does not pay a regular dividend. It paid none from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025. Its last payout, about $275 million in fiscal 2020, appears to include a one-time special dividend. For an income investor, any return would come from share price gains, not cash payments. Hayward has used buybacks (repurchasing its own shares) instead. It spent about $358 million on them from fiscal 2021 to fiscal 2025, nearly all of it ($343 million) in fiscal 2022. Shares outstanding fell 10.7%, from about 233 million on March 7, 2022, to about 208 million as of October 26, 2026.
The price record covers about 5.6 years, so it misses the 2008 crisis and the 2020 COVID crash. In the 2022 bear market, the shares fell 64.7% from January 3 to September 30, 2022, and had not regained that peak as of October 28, 2026. A single stock carries more risk than a diversified fund that spreads money across many companies.
Questions investors ask
How does Hayward Holdings make money?
Hayward makes money by designing and manufacturing pool equipment such as variable-speed pumps, filters, cleaners, heaters, lights and salt chlorine generators. Most sales go through distributors, which resell to pool builders and servicers. The company estimates about 85% of net sales come from the aftermarket: repairing, replacing and upgrading equipment on existing pools. In fiscal 2025, residential pool products were 90% of its $1.12 billion revenue, and North America was 85.5%. Net income was $151.6 million.
Does Hayward Holdings pay a dividend?
No. Hayward paid no dividends from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025. Its last payout, about $275 million in fiscal 2020, appears to include a one-time special dividend. The company has returned cash through share buybacks instead, spending about $358 million from fiscal 2021 to fiscal 2025. That means investors looking for regular income get none from this stock. Any return depends on share price changes.
Who are Hayward's customers?
Mostly pool distributors. Most of Hayward's sales go to distributors, which resell to thousands of pool builders and servicers. The rest go directly to large retailers, builders and buying groups. Builders and servicers strongly influence what equipment pool owners choose. Sales are concentrated: the two largest customers accounted for about 33% and 12% of net sales in fiscal 2025. Losing either one, or a big cut in its orders, could hurt results.
Is Hayward Holdings profitable?
Yes. In fiscal 2025, Hayward earned net income of $151.6 million on revenue of $1.12 billion, a 13.5% net margin. Diluted earnings per share were $0.68. Free cash flow (cash from operations minus capital spending) was $227.3 million. Profit has been uneven: net income fell from $203.7 million in fiscal 2021 to $80.7 million in fiscal 2023 before recovering. In the quarter ended September 26, 2026, net income rose 34.9% from a year earlier to $32.4 million.
How has Hayward stock performed?
Mixed, with big swings. As of October 28, 2026, the shares returned -8.6% a year over five years, a 36% total loss, but 9.1% a year over three years. Calendar-year price returns were -64.2% in 2022, +44.7% in 2023, +12.4% in 2024 and +1.1% in 2025. For 2026 through October 28, the stock was down 4.3%. One-year volatility, a measure of how much the price moves, was 35.1%. The deepest drop in its 5.6-year history was 70.5%.