BNP Paribas Financial Markets Has $10.13 Million Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 32.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,585 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,034 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Watsco were worth $10,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Watsco during the third quarter worth about $48,000. Covington Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covington Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 32,310 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,893,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,554,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in Watsco by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,084 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,468,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in Watsco by 10.6% during 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 in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Price Performance

WSO stock opened at $551.60 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.63 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $506.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $487.92. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $373.33 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The company’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.35 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Watsco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $491.25.

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.