Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by LaFleur & Godfrey LLC

LaFleur & Godfrey LLC lowered its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,634 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 2,642 shares during the period. Watsco comprises 2.5% of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC owned 0.10% of Watsco worth $18,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 3.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,733 shares of the construction company's stock worth $6,362,000 after acquiring an additional 513 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 22.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 3,499 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,621,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 495.1% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 10,730 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,971,000 after purchasing an additional 8,927 shares during the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its stake in Watsco by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 7,445 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,449,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Watsco by 6.6% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 39,679 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $18,381,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $488.33.

Insider Activity at Watsco

In other Watsco news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 12.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Watsco Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of WSO stock traded up $5.82 during trading on Monday, reaching $496.92. 204,978 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 201,972. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $373.33 and a twelve month high of $571.41. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $508.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $492.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.07 billion, a PE ratio of 38.40 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.35 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. Watsco's payout ratio is currently 83.46%.

About Watsco

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.