Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Decreases Holdings in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp cut its stake in Watsco by 46.5% in Q4, leaving it with 58,932 shares worth about $19.9 million (~0.15% of the company), while institutional investors hold roughly 89.7% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but cautious: Watsco has a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold with a consensus price target of $399.83 after recent price-target moves ranging from $370 to $485.
• Watsco beat the quarter's estimates (EPS $1.87 vs $1.73; revenue $1.53B vs $1.49B) despite year‑over‑year EPS softness, and it raised its quarterly dividend to $3.30 (annual $13.20), a 3.0% yield with a 109% payout ratio.

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp reduced its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 46.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 58,932 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 51,228 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned about 0.15% of Watsco worth $19,871,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truist Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Watsco by 89.2% during the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 37,808 shares of the construction company's stock worth $15,286,000 after buying an additional 17,820 shares in the last quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 47.7% in the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 124,789 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $50,452,000 after acquiring an additional 40,326 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Watsco by 577.9% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 19,957 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $8,069,000 after acquiring an additional 17,013 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Watsco by 237.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,629 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 3,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,392,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on WSO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Watsco from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Zacks Research raised Watsco from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group began coverage on Watsco in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $370.00 target price for the company. Stephens boosted their price target on Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Watsco from $460.00 to $370.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watsco currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $399.83.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $437.69 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $17.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.32 and a beta of 1.06. Watsco, Inc. has a 1 year low of $323.05 and a 1 year high of $496.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $398.25 and a 200-day moving average of $376.93.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.14. Watsco had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 15.31%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.93 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.49 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 16th were given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is a positive change from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 16th. Watsco's payout ratio is currently 109.00%.

Watsco 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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