William Blair Comments on Watsco’s Q2 Earnings (NYSE:WSO)

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) – Analysts at William Blair raised their Q2 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Watsco in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, October 30th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the construction company will earn $4.37 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $4.33. William Blair has a “Market Perform” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.62 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco’s Q4 2026 earnings at $2.09 EPS.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.60 by ($0.62). Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.22 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Watsco from $505.00 to $460.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $525.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Watsco has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $440.83.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO opened at $357.93 on Monday. Watsco has a 52 week low of $350.00 and a 52 week high of $571.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.96 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $385.89 and a 200-day moving average of $428.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter worth $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the second quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Watsco by 115.4% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Watsco by 2,366.7% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 74 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 16th were issued a dividend of $3.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 93.75%.

About Watsco

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.