134,214 Shares in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Purchased by Proficio Capital Partners LLC

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 134,214 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $63,603,000. Watsco comprises 0.8% of Proficio Capital Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Proficio Capital Partners LLC owned about 0.33% of Watsco at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after buying an additional 346,470 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $649,957,000 after buying an additional 118,713 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Watsco by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $577,350,000 after buying an additional 65,846 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,330 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $345,783,000 after buying an additional 63,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Watsco by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 464,061 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $228,263,000 after buying an additional 41,845 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $486.25.

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Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of Watsco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 12.86% of the company's stock.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE WSO opened at $490.82 on Friday. Watsco, Inc. has a 1 year low of $393.88 and a 1 year high of $571.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.83 billion, a PE ratio of 37.04 and a beta of 0.92. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $488.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $494.83.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.51%.

Watsco Company 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.

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