Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Purchased by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 107.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,517 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,417 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI’s holdings in Watsco were worth $4,036,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,196 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $567,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC raised its position in Watsco by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 754 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,686 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 7,692 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,645,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 1,949 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WSO shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $455.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Mizuho set a $490.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Watsco from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $515.00 price objective for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $480.83.

Watsco Trading Down 3.6%

WSO opened at $470.38 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $489.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $497.39. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $439.08 and a 12-month high of $571.42. The firm has a market cap of $19.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.50 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.24%.

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.