Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Gateway Investment Advisers LLC

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lowered its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,032 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 521 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $1,911,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC boosted its position in Watsco by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,252,822 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $616,357,000 after acquiring an additional 62,041 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Watsco by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $577,350,000 after acquiring an additional 65,846 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Watsco by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,330 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $345,783,000 after acquiring an additional 63,254 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Markel Group Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 582,500 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $286,520,000 after acquiring an additional 11,250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total transaction of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 12.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $496.92 on Friday. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $373.33 and a one year high of $571.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $508.48 and its 200-day moving average is $492.31. The company has a market capitalization of $20.07 billion, a PE ratio of 38.40 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.35 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Northcoast Research started coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Watsco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $488.33.

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.