Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Sells 3,320 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. cut its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 42.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,552 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 3,320 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Watsco were worth $2,157,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WSO. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Watsco by 10.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth about $63,603,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in Watsco by 2,128.1% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 107,463 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $52,880,000 after buying an additional 102,640 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in Watsco by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company's stock worth $577,350,000 after buying an additional 65,846 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Watsco Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE WSO traded down $4.55 on Wednesday, reaching $513.40. The company had a trading volume of 147,504 shares, compared to its average volume of 245,714. The company's fifty day moving average is $494.88 and its 200 day moving average is $497.64. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $396.82 and a 52-week high of $571.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.75 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio is currently 81.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $486.25.

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.