Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Cuts Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI decreased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 71.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 884 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,194 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Watsco were worth $321,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WSO. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Watsco by 4.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,927 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,013,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 95.0% in 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 period. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 50,442 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $22,275,000 after acquiring an additional 3,570 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings 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 valued at $7,180,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Price Performance

Watsco stock opened at $384.98 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.95 and a beta of 1.02. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $323.05 and a 1-year high of $494.94. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $390.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $392.55.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.14. Watsco had a return on equity of 15.31% and a net margin of 6.85%.The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be issued a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 109.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $385.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Watsco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $402.71.

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.