Gotham Asset Management LLC Acquires 14,980 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Watsco, Inc. by 55.3%, owning approximately $21.38 million worth of shares by the end of the latest reporting period.
• Watsco reported $4.52 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $4.84, with a revenue of $2.06 billion, down 3.6% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $3.00 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.0%.

Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 55.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,056 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,980 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Watsco worth $21,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Watsco by 89,376.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 477,802 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $242,867,000 after purchasing an additional 477,268 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Watsco by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,454,512 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $739,088,000 after purchasing an additional 82,977 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the first quarter worth about $41,218,000. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 5.7% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 814,712 shares of the construction company's stock worth $414,118,000 after acquiring an additional 43,776 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 290,327 shares of the construction company's stock worth $147,573,000 after buying an additional 38,798 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of WSO stock traded up $5.02 on Friday, reaching $408.41. The company had a trading volume of 241,987 shares, compared to its average volume of 280,110. The business's 50-day moving average is $439.49 and its 200 day moving average is $463.34. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $390.36 and a one year high of $571.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.56 billion, a PE ratio of 31.32 and a beta of 0.96.

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

Watsco Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WSO. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $455.00 to $450.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.