Danske Bank A S Makes New $7.24 Million Investment in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 17,362 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,235,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Bayban acquired a new stake in Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Watsco News

Here are the key news stories impacting Watsco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its EPS forecast for Q1 2027 to $1.93 from $1.92 and Q1 2028 to $2.05 from $1.93. Its FY2028 estimate also increased to $15.26 from $14.93, suggesting analysts still see longer-term earnings growth potential. Watsco stock information
• Neutral Sentiment: The firm maintained estimates of $13.53 EPS for FY2027 and $15.26 for FY2028, while its current full-year consensus reference stands at approximately $12.43 per share. The revisions indicate a mixed outlook rather than a broad change in the long-term investment thesis.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut its FY2026 EPS forecast to $12.21 from $12.56 and lowered Q3 2026 EPS to $4.21 from $4.29 and Q4 2026 EPS to $2.13 from $2.15. These reductions point to softer near-term earnings expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Estimates were also reduced for Q2 2027 to $4.61 from $4.75, Q3 2027 to $4.65 from $4.69, and FY2027 to $13.53 from $13.70. The repeated cuts may weigh on sentiment, particularly because Watsco already trades at a meaningful earnings multiple despite its recent earnings miss.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on WSO. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 target price on Watsco in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research note on Monday, August 17th. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Watsco from $385.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $395.50.

Watsco Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE WSO opened at $311.57 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $363.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $385.73. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $300.66 and a 12 month high of $459.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.85 billion, a PE ratio of 27.02 and a beta of 1.05.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.41 by ($0.41). Watsco had a net margin of 6.53% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.52 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were given a dividend of $3.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 114.48%.

About Watsco

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.