Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Purchases New Shares in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 544 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $258,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth about $399,000. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Watsco by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 11,640 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,516,000 after buying an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its stake in Watsco by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 373 shares of the construction company's stock worth $177,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in Watsco by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,104 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,788,000 after buying an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth about $63,603,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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Insider Activity at Watsco

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 12.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Watsco Trading Down 2.7 %

WSO stock opened at $506.39 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.22 and a beta of 0.92. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $393.88 and a 12 month high of $571.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $487.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $494.76.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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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