Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Makes New $12.58 Million Investment in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Key Points

• Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec invested $12.58 million in Watsco, acquiring approximately 24,755 shares, which represents about 0.06% ownership of the company.
• Watsco recently missed earnings estimates with an EPS of $4.52, which was below the expected $4.84, while their quarterly revenue was down 3.6% year-over-year.
• The company announced a $3.00 quarterly dividend, reflecting an annualized dividend of $12.00, resulting in a yield of 2.9%.

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec purchased a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 24,755 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $12,583,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec owned about 0.06% of Watsco at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 115.4% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Watsco from $455.00 to $450.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 price target on Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Watsco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $484.17.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $402.04. The company had a trading volume of 290,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 308,039. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $442.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $467.03. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $397.73 and a 12 month high of $571.41. The firm has a market cap of $16.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.83 and a beta of 0.96.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.84 by ($0.32). Watsco had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 16.96%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.49 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 16th were paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 16th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.02%.

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.