Northcoast Research Initiates Coverage on Watsco (NYSE:WSO)

Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of Watsco (NYSE:WSO) in a research note published on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage issued a neutral rating on the construction company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $491.25.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of Watsco stock opened at $554.79 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $499.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $485.27. The firm has a market cap of $22.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.87 and a beta of 0.88. Watsco has a fifty-two week low of $373.33 and a fifty-two week high of $555.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its 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 return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.35 EPS. Watsco’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Watsco will post 13.06 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 16th were issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 83.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watsco

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WSO. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Watsco by 5.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,252,822 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $616,357,000 after acquiring an additional 62,041 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Watsco by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $577,350,000 after purchasing an additional 65,846 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 801,152 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $371,126,000 after acquiring an additional 9,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Watsco by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,330 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $345,783,000 after acquiring an additional 63,254 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.