Bank of Nova Scotia Takes $10.56 Million Position in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 25,331 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $10,556,000. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.06% of Watsco at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the 2nd quarter valued at about $773,000. Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the second quarter worth approximately $1,305,000. Commerce Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco during the second quarter valued at approximately $9,874,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco during the second quarter valued at approximately $376,000. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Watsco during the second quarter valued at approximately $78,695,000. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Watsco Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of WSO opened at $310.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $12.81 billion, a PE ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 1.05. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $300.66 and a 1-year high of $459.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $361.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $385.15.

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

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 16th. Watsco's payout ratio is currently 114.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DA Davidson decreased 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. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $485.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Monday, August 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 price target on Watsco in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watsco currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $395.50.

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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