Korea Investment CORP Takes Position in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Korea Investment CORP purchased a new position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 20,002 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,335,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 4.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,927 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,013,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in Watsco by 95.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,297 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $573,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Watsco by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 50,442 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,275,000 after acquiring an additional 3,570 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of Watsco by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 16,258 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,180,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 523 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE WSO opened at $310.64 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $361.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $385.15. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $300.66 and a 52 week high of $459.00. The stock has a market cap of $12.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 1.05.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.41 by ($0.41). Watsco had a net margin of 6.53% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The business had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.52 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were given a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 114.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WSO. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 price objective on Watsco in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their target price on Watsco from $385.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $395.50.

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.