BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Sells 698 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,799 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 698 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Watsco were worth $2,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the second quarter worth about $2,109,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 40.6% during the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,217 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,582,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Watsco by 3,571.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $560,000 after buying an additional 1,107 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 64,758 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $31,853,000 after buying an additional 1,074 shares during the period. Finally, Markel Group Inc. grew its position in Watsco by 0.9% during the second quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 571,250 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $264,626,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WSO shares. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on Watsco in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $491.25.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE WSO opened at $537.50 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $508.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $488.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a PE ratio of 41.54 and a beta of 0.92. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $373.33 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.35 earnings per share. Watsco’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 16th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is 83.46%.

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.