Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Cynosure Group LLC

Cynosure Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 631 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 229 shares during the period. Cynosure Group LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WSO. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in Watsco by 195.2% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,954,000 after purchasing an additional 2,627 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its position in Watsco by 682.4% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 4,092 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,013,000 after acquiring an additional 3,569 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Watsco by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,233 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $606,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Watsco by 3.5% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 16,029 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $7,828,000 after acquiring an additional 546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 57.1% during the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 1,101 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $542,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WSO. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $486.25.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO stock opened at $492.55 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $496.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $499.36. The firm has a market cap of $19.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.17 and a beta of 1.00. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $396.82 and a 1-year high of $571.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 81.51%.

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.