Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,620 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 354 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $1,551,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 40,702.6% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 205,237 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $87,938,000 after purchasing an additional 204,734 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 120.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 300,059 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $113,338,000 after acquiring an additional 163,915 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Watsco by 111.1% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 292,832 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $110,608,000 after purchasing an additional 154,105 shares during the last quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $64,908,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 37.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 351,188 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $132,649,000 after purchasing an additional 96,383 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WSO. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Watsco from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $404.25.

Watsco Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE WSO opened at $447.64 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $315.17 and a 52 week high of $451.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $413.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $400.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.68 billion, a PE ratio of 34.43 and a beta of 0.89.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 19.26% and a net margin of 7.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.83 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. This is an increase from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.08%.

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.