Crestline Management LP Has $4.13 Million Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Crestline Management LP raised its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 278.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,709 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,410 shares during the quarter. Crestline Management LP’s holdings in Watsco were worth $4,127,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,618,109 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,714,586,000 after buying an additional 52,127 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Watsco by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $649,957,000 after purchasing an additional 118,713 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 725,186 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $343,168,000 after purchasing an additional 20,856 shares during the period. Markel Group Inc. lifted its stake in Watsco by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 590,500 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $279,832,000 after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Watsco by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 477,470 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $226,268,000 after purchasing an additional 13,409 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Watsco in a research note on Monday, April 14th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $515.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $455.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Mizuho set a $490.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $480.83.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $475.66 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $493.68 and a 200-day moving average of $497.29. The company has a market capitalization of $19.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.90 and a beta of 1.11. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $439.08 and a fifty-two week high of $571.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.36). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.17 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. This is a positive change from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.24%.

Watsco Company 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.