Watsco (NYSE:WSO) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) reached a new 52-week low on Monday. The company traded as low as $277.34 and last traded at $279.8950, with a volume of 554,792 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $279.90.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WSO. Weiss Ratings cut Watsco from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Watsco from $370.00 to $330.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a report on Monday, August 17th. Zacks Research downgraded Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 target price on Watsco in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $386.12.

Watsco Trading Up 1.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $309.58 and its 200 day moving average is $361.54.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.41 by ($0.41). The business had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.53% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.52 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.22 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Friday, October 16th will be paid a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 16th. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 114.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Caledonia Investments PLC lifted its holdings in Watsco by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Caledonia Investments PLC now owns 261,439 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $79,072,000 after buying an additional 28,512 shares during the period. GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Watsco by 72.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,355 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,016,000 after buying an additional 1,404 shares during the last quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Watsco by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 95,325 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,854,000 after buying an additional 15,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the third quarter valued at about $255,000. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Company Profile

Watsco, Inc (NYSE: WSO) is a distributor of heating, air conditioning and refrigeration equipment and related products. The company supplies residential and commercial contractors with air conditioners, heat pumps, furnaces, refrigeration systems, indoor air-quality products, controls, replacement parts and other installation supplies.

Watsco serves the replacement and new-construction markets through a network of distribution centers, branches, showrooms and e-commerce platforms. Its customers primarily include HVAC and refrigeration contractors, dealers and other industry professionals, while its products are sourced from major manufacturers and distributed under leading industry brands.

Founded in 1956, Watsco has expanded through organic growth and acquisitions to become one of the largest HVAC and refrigeration distributors in North America.