William Blair Issues Negative Outlook for Watsco Earnings

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) – Stock analysts at William Blair reduced their Q2 2025 earnings estimates for Watsco in a research report issued on Tuesday, February 18th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now forecasts that the construction company will post earnings per share of $5.10 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $5.12. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.62 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco’s FY2026 earnings at $16.40 EPS.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $495.00.

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of WSO opened at $498.12 on Friday. Watsco has a one year low of $380.58 and a one year high of $571.41. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $484.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $492.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.11 billion, a PE ratio of 37.59 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Watsco’s payout ratio is 81.51%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watsco

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,782,651,000 after acquiring an additional 346,470 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Watsco by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,618,109 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,714,586,000 after acquiring an additional 52,127 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Watsco by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $649,957,000 after acquiring an additional 118,713 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Watsco by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $577,350,000 after acquiring an additional 65,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 725,186 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $343,168,000 after acquiring an additional 20,856 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.