Baird Financial Group Inc. Sells 3,693 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Baird Financial Group Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 110,521 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 3,693 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.27% of Watsco worth $52,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,618,109 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,714,586,000 after buying an additional 52,127 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Watsco by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $649,957,000 after buying an additional 118,713 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Watsco by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 725,186 shares of the construction company's stock worth $343,168,000 after purchasing an additional 20,856 shares during the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Watsco by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 590,500 shares of the construction company's stock worth $279,832,000 after buying an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 477,470 shares of the construction company's stock worth $226,268,000 after purchasing an additional 13,409 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Watsco Stock Down 1.0 %

Watsco stock traded down $4.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $470.25. 238,383 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 253,869. The company has a market capitalization of $19.00 billion, a PE ratio of 35.49 and a beta of 1.11. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $439.08 and a 1-year high of $571.42. The business has a fifty day moving average of $493.01 and a 200 day moving average of $497.10.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.36). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.17 EPS. The company's revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. This is an increase from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WSO shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on Watsco from $475.00 to $455.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Watsco from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Loop Capital raised their price objective on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Watsco in a research note on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $515.00 target price for the company. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Watsco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $480.83.

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.