New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Takes $3.38 Million Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 7,124 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,376,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in Watsco by 57.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 90 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Watsco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $500.42 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $496.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $498.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a PE ratio of 37.77 and a beta of 0.92. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $396.82 and a one year high of $571.42.

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

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital upped their target price on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.25.

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.