Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 12.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,576 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 1,074 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC's holdings in Watsco were worth $4,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 19,010 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $9,009,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. raised its position in Watsco by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 144,435 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $68,446,000 after purchasing an additional 16,665 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 107.7% in the fourth quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 8,517 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,036,000 after acquiring an additional 4,417 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Watsco by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,495 shares of the construction company's stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, TrinityPoint Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Watsco by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,016,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company's stock.
Watsco Trading Down 0.6%
Shares of WSO stock traded down $2.50 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $443.35. 396,068 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 287,317. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $435.58 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41. The stock's 50 day moving average is $481.57 and its 200-day moving average is $494.65. The company has a market cap of $17.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.46 and a beta of 1.11.
Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.36). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.17 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.
Watsco Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. This is a positive change from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Watsco's payout ratio is presently 92.24%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WSO has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Watsco from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Mizuho set a $490.00 target price on Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Watsco from $475.00 to $455.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Watsco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $486.67.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on WSO
About Watsco
(
Free Report)
Watsco, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution of air conditioning, heating, refrigeration equipment, and related parts and supplies in the United States and internationally. The company distributes equipment, including residential ducted and ductless air conditioners, such as gas, electric, and oil furnaces; commercial air conditioning and heating equipment systems; and other specialized equipment.
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