London, U.K.-based Pentair plc (PNR) is a water treatment company, providing various water solutions, operating through Flow, Water Solutions, and Pool segments. With a market cap of $14.9 billion, Pentair delivers a range of smart and sustainable water solutions to homes, businesses and industries enabling its customers to access clean water, reduce water consumption, as well as recover and reuse it.

Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as "large-cap stocks," Pentair fits right into that category, with its market cap exceeding this threshold, reflecting its substantial size, influence, and dominance in the water treatment space.

Despite its strengths, Pentair’s stock has tanked 19.3% from its all-time high of $110.71 touched on Nov. 27, 2024. Meanwhile, PNR has plunged 11.7% over the past three months, notably underperforming the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 4.7% drop during the same time frame.

Pentair has underperformed the broader market over the longer term as well. PNR stock has declined 7.9% over the past six months and gained 5.1% over the past 52 weeks, compared to SPX’s marginal 78 bps dip over the past six months and 8.5% returns over the past year.

To confirm the overall bullish trend and recent downturn, PNR traded consistently above its 200-day moving average over the past year before dropping below it earlier this month. Moreover, the stock has traded mostly below its 50-day moving average since mid-December 2024.

Despite delivering better-than-expected financials, Pentair’s stock prices dropped 4.3% after the release of its Q4 results on Feb. 4. Although the company reported a slight 1.2% drop in net sales compared to the year-ago quarter to $972.9 million, it was anticipated and in fact, the company surpassed Street’s topline expectations by a notable margin. Meanwhile, its adjusted earnings of $1.08 per share also exceeded analysts’ consensus estimates by 5.9%.

However, the company’s fiscal 2025 topline growth guidance range of 0% to 2% and adjusted EPS growth guidance range of 7% to 11%, missed the Street’s expectations and unsettled investor confidence.

Meanwhile, Pentair has also underperformed its peer American Water Works Company, Inc.’s (AWK) 1.3% dip over the past six months and a 17.7% surge over the past year.

Nevertheless, analysts remain optimistic about Pentair’s long-term prospects. Among the 19 analysts covering the PNR stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” Its mean price target of $113.83 suggests a 27.5% upside potential from current price levels.