Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Purchases 273 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,630 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $4,126,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 0.5% during the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,655,946 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $625,484,000 after acquiring an additional 7,723 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Watsco by 0.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,310,201 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $476,973,000 after purchasing an additional 9,201 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its holdings in Watsco by 0.7% in the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 770,476 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $291,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,997 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Watsco by 2.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 648,662 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $245,013,000 after purchasing an additional 16,589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Markel Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Watsco by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 556,750 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $238,551,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO traded up $8.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $464.55. 288,780 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 328,611. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $315.17 and a 52-week high of $466.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $419.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $401.87. The company has a market cap of $18.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.77 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Watsco’s payout ratio is 83.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $404.25.

Watsco Profile

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.