Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,371,535 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 118,713 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 3.40% of Watsco worth $649,957,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WSO. Stephens Inc. AR grew its stake in shares of Watsco by 6.9% in the third quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 902 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $444,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Watsco by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,570 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,064,000 after purchasing an additional 652 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Watsco by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 12,168 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,985,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Watsco by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,145 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in Watsco by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 17,128 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $8,425,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James initiated coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $486.25.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on WSO
Watsco Stock Performance
Shares of WSO stock traded up $25.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $513.78. 444,907 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 262,441. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $389.08 and a twelve month high of $571.41. The firm has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.78 and a beta of 0.95. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $485.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $493.82.
Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.
Watsco Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared 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 2.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.51%.
Insider Activity
In other Watsco news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 12.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.
About Watsco
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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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