State Street Corp Boosts Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,173,762 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 65,846 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 2.91% of Watsco worth $577,350,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Watsco during the second quarter worth $26,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 76.2% in the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 74 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in Watsco by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 94 shares of the construction company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Northcoast Research began coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th.

Watsco Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WSO traded down $4.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $522.37. The company had a trading volume of 180,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 278,300. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $373.33 and a 52-week high of $571.41. The stock has a market cap of $21.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.71 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $510.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $489.89.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.77%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.35 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 16th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.07%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio is presently 83.46%.

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.