Tower Bridge Advisors Has $8.10 Million Stock Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Tower Bridge Advisors lowered its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,095 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 217 shares during the quarter. Tower Bridge Advisors’ holdings in Watsco were worth $8,101,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Watsco by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,318 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP increased its position in shares of Watsco by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 2,200 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,603,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Watsco by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,311 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,412,000 after acquiring an additional 813 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Watsco by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,774 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $9,845,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WSO opened at $503.80 on Friday. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $388.47 and a 12-month high of $571.41. The stock has a market cap of $20.34 billion, a PE ratio of 38.02 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50 day moving average of $485.23 and a 200-day moving average of $493.29.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Northcoast Research started coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $486.25.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

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.