Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors L.P.

Natixis Advisors L.P. cut its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 119,251 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,628 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned about 0.30% of Watsco worth $51,095,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. LGT Group Foundation acquired a new position in Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,207,000. Heritage Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $478,000. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 90.0% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,364 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 646 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 145.6% in the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 2,982 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,278,000 after acquiring an additional 1,768 shares during the period. Finally, ICW Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 696 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $404.25.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO traded up $8.47 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $464.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 288,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 328,611. The company has a market cap of $18.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.77 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $419.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $401.87. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $315.17 and a one year high of $466.56.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.26 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.03% and a return on equity of 19.26%. Watsco’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.83 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.26 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $2.70 dividend. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.08%.

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.