Huntington National Bank Sells 90 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Huntington National Bank decreased its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 655 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 90 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Watsco were worth $310,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Watsco by 32.2% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,258 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,094,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Watsco by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,645,000 after buying an additional 2,738 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 464,061 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $228,263,000 after buying an additional 41,845 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at about $10,446,000. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its position in shares of Watsco by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 139,157 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $65,966,000 after acquiring an additional 18,279 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Trading Down 3.0 %

WSO opened at $477.78 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $496.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $499.29. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $396.82 and a 1-year high of $571.42. The stock has a market cap of $19.30 billion, a PE ratio of 36.06 and a beta of 1.00.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. Equities analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is 81.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.25.

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.