144,050 Shares in Watsco, Inc. $WSO Acquired by Corient Private Wealth LP

Key Points

• Corient Private Wealth LP acquired 144,050 Watsco shares worth approximately $60 million, representing about 0.35% of the company. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 89.71% of Watsco.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious view, with Watsco receiving an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $395.50. Recent targets range from $330 to $485.
• Watsco’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, with EPS of $4.00 versus $4.41 forecast and revenue of $2.10 billion versus $2.14 billion expected. The company paid a quarterly dividend of $3.30, equivalent to a 4.2% annualized yield.

Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 144,050 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $60,024,000. Corient Private Wealth LP owned approximately 0.35% of Watsco as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Watsco by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,927 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,013,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its position in Watsco by 95.0% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,297 shares of the construction company's stock worth $573,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 7.6% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 50,442 shares of the construction company's stock worth $22,275,000 after buying an additional 3,570 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Watsco by 2.8% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 16,258 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,180,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 523 shares of the construction company's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WSO. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $385.00 to $330.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $485.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a report on Monday, August 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $395.50.

Watsco Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE WSO opened at $313.60 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average is $356.85 and its 200 day moving average is $383.01. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $295.75 and a twelve month high of $459.00. The company has a market cap of $12.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20 and a beta of 1.05.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.41 by ($0.41). The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 6.53%.Watsco's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were given a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. Watsco's payout ratio is presently 114.48%.

Watsco Company Profile

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.

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