UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Lowers Stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC reduced its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 12.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 118,860 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 17,007 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $58,465,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC grew its position in Watsco by 0.7% during the third quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 2,999 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,475,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 94 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 952 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in Watsco by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 115 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Equitable Trust Co. lifted its stake in Watsco by 2.2% in the third quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 1,166 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $574,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watsco Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WSO opened at $543.19 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $507.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $488.47. The company has a market cap of $21.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.98 and a beta of 0.92. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $373.33 and a 12 month high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.77%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.35 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 83.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Northcoast Research started coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $491.25.

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.