What is William Blair's Estimate for Watsco FY2024 Earnings?

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) - Analysts at William Blair upped their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of Watsco in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, January 15th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the construction company will post earnings per share of $13.13 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $12.75. The consensus estimate for Watsco's current full-year earnings is $12.97 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco's Q4 2024 earnings at $2.23 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $14.85 EPS.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.77%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.35 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

WSO has been the subject of several other research reports. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $488.33.

Watsco Stock Up 1.2 %

WSO stock traded up $5.82 during trading on Monday, hitting $496.92. The company had a trading volume of 204,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,972. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.40 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco has a 52-week low of $373.33 and a 52-week high of $571.41. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $508.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $492.50.

Institutional Trading of Watsco

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Watsco by 32.2% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,258 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,094,000 after buying an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its position in shares of Watsco by 40.6% during the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,217 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,582,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Watsco by 3,571.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $560,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Watsco by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 64,758 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $31,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Interval Partners LP acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 2nd quarter worth $11,740,000. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watsco

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

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. 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.