O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 20.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,801 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 645 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Watsco were worth $1,801,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. My Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Watsco by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. My Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 687 shares of the construction company's stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,196 shares of the construction company's stock worth $567,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 754 shares of the construction company's stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,686 shares of the construction company's stock worth $799,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 7,692 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,645,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WSO shares. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock 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 for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four 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 a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $486.25.

Watsco Stock Down 0.5 %

WSO stock traded down $2.54 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $496.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 57,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,195. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $396.82 and a 52-week high of $571.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.55 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $495.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $498.81.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $3.00 per share. This is a boost from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco's payout ratio is 90.57%.

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.