Jennison Associates LLC Grows Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Free Report) by 80.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 123,040 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 54,866 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned 0.31% of Watsco worth $52,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 53.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.1% in the third quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 2,693 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,017,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 35.0% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 108 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 80 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 98 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company's stock.

Watsco Stock Up 6.5 %

Shares of WSO stock traded up $27.03 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $440.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 775,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 346,627. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $410.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $399.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $17.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.25 and a beta of 0.90. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $315.17 and a one year high of $451.29.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.35 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $2.70 dividend. 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. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Watsco's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird upped their price target 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $398.00.

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.