J. W. Coons Advisors LLC Boosts Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

J. W. Coons Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,074 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $1,457,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in Watsco by 32.2% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,258 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,094,000 after acquiring an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its position in Watsco by 40.6% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,217 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,582,000 after buying an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Watsco by 3,571.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $560,000 after buying an additional 1,107 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Watsco by 1.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 64,758 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $31,853,000 after buying an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Watsco by 5.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,645,000 after buying an additional 2,738 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Watsco

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 12.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James initiated coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $495.00.

Watsco Trading Down 3.3 %

NYSE:WSO opened at $498.12 on Monday. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $380.58 and a 12-month high of $571.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $484.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.59 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 81.51%.

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.