River Road Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

River Road Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,813 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,464 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC's holdings in Watsco were worth $6,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 4.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,411,894 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,473,836,000 after purchasing an additional 146,305 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Watsco by 1.2% in the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 801,152 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $371,126,000 after acquiring an additional 9,141 shares during the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. grew its position in 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 during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Watsco by 1.6% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 393,032 shares of the construction company's stock worth $182,068,000 after acquiring an additional 6,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its position in Watsco by 263.6% in the first quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 320,008 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $138,234,000 after purchasing an additional 231,987 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

Watsco Trading Up 5.8 %

WSO traded up $28.44 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $516.34. 389,100 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 286,665. The firm's fifty day moving average is $481.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $477.52. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $362.26 and a 1-year high of $520.41. The company has a market cap of $20.83 billion, a PE ratio of 37.70 and a beta of 0.88.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th were issued 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 yield of 2.09%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.46%.

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.