Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Sells 68 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. cut its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,859 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 68 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in Watsco by 53.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC boosted its position in Watsco by 1.1% in the third quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 2,693 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Watsco by 35.0% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 108 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in Watsco by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 80 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Watsco by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 98 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $413.71 on Wednesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $315.17 and a 1-year high of $447.49. The company has a market cap of $16.34 billion, a PE ratio of 30.29 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a 50-day moving average of $409.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $398.83.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.44). The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.35 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.61%. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 79.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $398.00.

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.