Freemont Management S.A. Acquires Shares of 3,000 Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Freemont Management S.A. bought a new stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,000 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,476,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Watsco by 256.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,374 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 2,427 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Watsco in the first quarter valued at approximately $491,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the second quarter worth $2,109,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Watsco by 4.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,411,894 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,473,836,000 after acquiring an additional 146,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Markel Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Watsco by 0.9% in the second quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 571,250 shares of the construction company's stock worth $264,626,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Watsco Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of WSO stock traded down $17.69 on Thursday, reaching $525.37. 281,390 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 284,656. The business's 50 day moving average price is $491.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $481.73. The company has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.60 and a beta of 0.88. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $373.33 and a twelve month high of $545.49.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.35 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 16th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Watsco's payout ratio is currently 83.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

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.