Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Purchased by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,733 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $6,362,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First PREMIER Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the first quarter valued at $25,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its position in Watsco by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 58 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Watsco during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 76.2% during the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 74 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 52.6% in the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 87 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Price Performance

Watsco stock opened at $494.64 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $19.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.05 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $478.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $463.35. The company has a current ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $338.58 and a 12-month high of $520.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.70 by ($0.21). Watsco had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 7.02%. The business had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 16th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 16th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Watsco from $460.00 to $522.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $469.80.

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.