Centaurus Financial Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Centaurus Financial Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,162 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 133 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $3,031,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Watsco by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 1,633 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $705,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 66.7% during the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 500 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $216,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in Watsco by 159.0% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 202 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 100.0% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 58 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Watsco by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 131,149 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $56,653,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on WSO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $491.25.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $554.79 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $499.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $485.16. The company has a market capitalization of $22.40 billion, a PE ratio of 42.87 and a beta of 0.88. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $373.33 and a 1-year high of $555.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.35 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 83.46%.

Watsco Company 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.