Watsco, Inc. $WSO Shares Sold by Checchi Capital Advisers LLC

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC reduced its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 693 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 42 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WSO. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Watsco during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 115.4% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WSO shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $425.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $480.00.

Watsco Price Performance

Watsco stock opened at $411.29 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.68 billion, a PE ratio of 31.54 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $409.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $447.91. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $378.35 and a 12 month high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.84 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 16.96%. Watsco’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 16th will be paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 16th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 92.02%.

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.