Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases New Stake in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 40,371 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,824,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Watsco by 103.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,642,893 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,564,423,000 after purchasing an additional 2,356,998 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,559,965 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $525,634,000 after buying an additional 46,799 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,238,121 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $500,572,000 after acquiring an additional 16,595 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Watsco by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 638,014 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $214,373,000 after acquiring an additional 5,176 shares during the period. Finally, Markel Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Watsco by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 582,169 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $211,787,000 after acquiring an additional 4,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, July 30th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Watsco from $385.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $395.50.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO opened at $314.48 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $364.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $386.25. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $300.66 and a 52-week high of $459.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.97 billion, a PE ratio of 27.27 and a beta of 1.05.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.41 by ($0.41). The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 6.53%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.52 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 16th were issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 114.48%.

Key Stories Impacting Watsco

Here are the key news stories impacting Watsco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2028 EPS forecast to $15.26 from $14.93, suggesting stronger long-term earnings potential. Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an Overweight rating on Watsco. Stephens Reaffirms Overweight Rating for Watsco
• Neutral Sentiment: The analyst revisions were mixed: Zacks increased estimates for Q1 2027 and Q1 2028, but maintained its FY2027 EPS forecast at $13.53 and FY2028 forecast at $15.26. The current full-year consensus remains $12.43 per share.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered its forecasts for Q3 2026 EPS to $4.21 from $4.29, Q4 2026 to $2.13 from $2.15, FY2026 to $12.21 from $12.56, Q2 2027 to $4.61 from $4.75, Q3 2027 to $4.65 from $4.69, Q4 2027 to $2.33 from $2.34, and FY2027 to $13.53 from $13.70. The broad downward revisions indicate softer near- and medium-term earnings expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: The latest quarterly results showed weakening profitability: EPS declined from $4.52 a year earlier and missed analysts’ estimates, while revenue increased only 2.1% year over year. Watsco is trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and near its 52-week low, which may amplify investor caution.

About Watsco

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.