Sterling Capital Management LLC Buys 731 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 55.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,050 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 731 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Watsco were worth $971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Watsco by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 15,211 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,208,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Watsco by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 341 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $162,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in Watsco by 44.4% during the 4th quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 6,048 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,866,000 after buying an additional 1,860 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 134.6% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 62,400 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $29,571,000 after acquiring an additional 35,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Watsco by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 11,624 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,508,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Watsco Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of WSO traded up $9.94 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $507.62. 272,958 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 254,293. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $396.82 and a 12-month high of $571.42. The firm has a market cap of $20.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.31 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $500.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $499.31.

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

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This is an increase from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on WSO. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James began coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Loop Capital raised their target price on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $515.00 price objective for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $492.00.

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.