Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Holdings Raised by Two Sigma Securities LLC

Two Sigma Securities LLC increased its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 170.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,753 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Two Sigma Securities LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $831,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the third quarter valued at $588,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Watsco by 500.0% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Watsco by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,269 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Watsco by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,590 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,645,000 after acquiring an additional 2,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the third quarter worth approximately $1,332,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $455.46 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $498.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $498.73. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $439.08 and a 52 week high of $571.42. The firm has a market cap of $18.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.37 and a beta of 1.00.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.36). Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.17 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $3.00 dividend. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $455.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Watsco in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $515.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Watsco from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $480.83.

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.