Brokerages Set Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Target Price at $469.80

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $486.75.

WSO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Watsco from $460.00 to $522.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

Institutional Trading of Watsco

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in shares of Watsco by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 94 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.6% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 952 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 10.2% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 293 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 100.0% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 58 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 52.6% during the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 87 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO opened at $484.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.21. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $477.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $469.28. Watsco has a fifty-two week low of $338.58 and a fifty-two week high of $520.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.53 billion, a PE ratio of 37.03 and a beta of 0.88.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.02% and a return on equity of 18.55%. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.42 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Watsco will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 16th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Watsco’s payout ratio is 82.63%.

Watsco Company 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.