Watsco (NYSE:WSO) Announces Earnings Results

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The construction company reported $3.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, FiscalAI reports. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO traded up $0.83 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $351.96. The stock had a trading volume of 384,436 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,233. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.50 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $382.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $425.98. Watsco has a 52 week low of $344.52 and a 52 week high of $571.41.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 16th were given a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watsco

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Watsco by 0.5% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,557,610 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $791,734,000 after purchasing an additional 7,760 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,485,996 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $656,036,000 after acquiring an additional 31,484 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in shares of Watsco by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 814,712 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $414,118,000 after purchasing an additional 43,776 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Watsco by 4.0% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 496,428 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $252,335,000 after buying an additional 18,958 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Watsco by 62.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 468,875 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $238,329,000 after purchasing an additional 180,951 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WSO. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Watsco from $425.00 to $390.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Watsco in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Zacks Research downgraded Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Watsco from $505.00 to $460.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $435.00.

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.