RWA Wealth Partners LLC Takes $796,000 Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

RWA Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,679 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $796,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,645,000 after purchasing an additional 2,738 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 2,128.1% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 107,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,880,000 after purchasing an additional 102,640 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 9.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 464,061 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $228,263,000 after purchasing an additional 41,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $10,446,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of WSO opened at $509.53 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $496.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $499.01. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $396.82 and a 12 month high of $571.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.45 and a beta of 0.92.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced 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. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 81.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.