Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Lowers Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Key Points

• Empirical Wealth Management significantly reduced its stake in Watsco, Inc. by 81.1%, now owning only 2,178 shares valued at approximately $1.1 million.
• Watsco reported earnings per share (EPS) of $4.52 for the last quarter, missing estimates of $4.84, while revenue declined by 3.6% year-over-year.
• The company recently declared a $3.00 quarterly dividend, resulting in a 2.8% yield with a high payout ratio of 92.24%.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management reduced its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 81.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,178 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 9,354 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Watsco were worth $1,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 115.4% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE WSO traded down $7.79 on Wednesday, hitting $420.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 234,158 shares, compared to its average volume of 301,340. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $417.73 and a 52-week high of $571.41. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $450.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $475.66. The firm has a market cap of $17.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.25 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 16.96% and a net margin of 7.08%. The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.49 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 16th were issued a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 target price on Watsco in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Watsco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho set a $490.00 target price on Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Watsco from $455.00 to $450.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $484.17.

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.