Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Purchased by Haverford Trust Co

Haverford Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 907 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in Watsco were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 256.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,374 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after acquiring an additional 2,427 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the first quarter worth about $491,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Watsco in the second quarter worth about $2,109,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco by 4.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,411,894 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,473,836,000 after buying an additional 146,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Markel Group Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 0.9% during the second quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 571,250 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $264,626,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on WSO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

Watsco Stock Performance

Watsco stock opened at $525.37 on Friday. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $373.33 and a one year high of $545.49. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $491.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $481.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.60 and a beta of 0.88.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.35 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 16th were issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 83.46%.

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.