Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Grace & White Inc. NY

Grace & White Inc. NY decreased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 42,625 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Watsco accounts for 3.2% of Grace & White Inc. NY’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Grace & White Inc. NY’s holdings in Watsco were worth $18,264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 53.1% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.1% during the third quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 2,693 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 35.0% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 108 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 80 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Watsco by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 98 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $398.00.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO stock traded up $7.21 on Tuesday, hitting $413.71. 465,686 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 341,092. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.34 billion, a PE ratio of 30.28 and a beta of 0.89. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $315.17 and a one year high of $447.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $408.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $398.65.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.06%.

Watsco Profile

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.