Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Sells 4,016 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 85,255 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 4,016 shares during the quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $40,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Watsco by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,318 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $625,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 2,200 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,603,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,311 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,412,000 after acquiring an additional 813 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,774 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,845,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on WSO. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.25.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSO opened at $499.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $20.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.70 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $484.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $493.04. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $387.58 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total transaction of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

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.