Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Purchased by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 33.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,919 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,977 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale's holdings in Watsco were worth $5,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Watsco by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 98 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Boit C F David acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $246,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Watsco by 40,702.6% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 205,237 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $87,938,000 after acquiring an additional 204,734 shares during the period. Birch Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC now owns 3,666 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,571,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 9,224 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,952,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watsco has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $396.00.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE WSO traded up $5.52 on Friday, hitting $417.71. The company had a trading volume of 280,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 343,833. The company has a market capitalization of $16.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company's fifty day moving average price is $408.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $397.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 1.47. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $309.17 and a 12-month high of $447.49.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. Watsco's revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.35 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This is a positive change from Watsco's previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Watsco's payout ratio is presently 71.74%.

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.