Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Has $7.35 Million Stake in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,807 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,382 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.05% of Watsco worth $7,349,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in Watsco by 2,366.7% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 74 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Watsco in the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Watsco from $460.00 to $370.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $399.83.

Watsco Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of WSO stock opened at $429.56 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $398.25 and a 200-day moving average of $377.02. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $323.05 and a 12-month high of $496.25. The company has a market capitalization of $17.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.65 and a beta of 1.12.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.14. Watsco had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 15.31%. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.93 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 16th were given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 109.54%.

Watsco Company Profile

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.