Dakota Wealth Management Raises Stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Dakota Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,298 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,222 shares during the quarter. Dakota Wealth Management’s holdings in Watsco were worth $3,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Watsco by 53.1% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $412.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.29 billion, a PE ratio of 30.19 and a beta of 0.89. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $310.20 and a 1-year high of $447.49. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $408.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $397.73.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.44). The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.36% and a return on equity of 21.36%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.35 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.17 EPS 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 issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $396.00.

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.