Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Acquires 100 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,100 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 100 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $536,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $4,070,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 648,662 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $245,013,000 after purchasing an additional 16,589 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at $2,516,000. Finally, Hamlin Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 295,833 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $126,756,000 after purchasing an additional 16,006 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO opened at $440.60 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $410.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $399.13. The company has a market capitalization of $17.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.25 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 3.36. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $315.17 and a fifty-two week high of $451.29.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. This is a positive change from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $398.00.

Watsco Company 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.