DAVENPORT & Co LLC Sells 3,962 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

DAVENPORT & Co LLC cut its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 1.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 320,834 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 3,962 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $141,174,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 62.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 468,875 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $238,329,000 after acquiring an additional 180,951 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in Watsco in the first quarter worth $54,536,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 6.0% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,454,512 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $739,088,000 after purchasing an additional 82,977 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Watsco during the first quarter valued at $41,218,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL lifted its position in Watsco by 5.7% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 814,712 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $414,118,000 after purchasing an additional 43,776 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Saturday, September 27th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Watsco from $450.00 to $425.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 price objective on Watsco in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $480.00.

Watsco Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:WSO opened at $415.70 on Monday. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $378.35 and a 12 month high of $571.41. The company has a market capitalization of $16.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.88 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $410.44 and its 200 day moving average is $448.50.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.84 by ($0.32). The business had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 16.96%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 16th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 16th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.02%.

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.