William Blair Weighs in on Watsco, Inc.’s FY2024 Earnings (NYSE:WSO)

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO – Get Rating) – Analysts at William Blair boosted their FY2024 earnings estimates for Watsco in a report issued on Tuesday, July 26th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the construction company will earn $14.85 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $14.80. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.63 per share.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 26th. The construction company reported $4.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.16% and a return on equity of 23.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.71 earnings per share.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Watsco from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Watsco from $208.00 to $204.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens lowered their target price on Watsco to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Watsco from $313.00 to $323.00 and gave the company a “maintains” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Watsco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $295.40.

Watsco Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of Watsco stock opened at $263.70 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.53 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50 day moving average is $247.54 and its 200 day moving average is $269.89. Watsco has a twelve month low of $220.68 and a twelve month high of $318.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 29th. Investors of record on Friday, July 15th will be issued a $2.20 dividend. This represents a $8.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 14th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watsco news, Director Cesar L. Alvarez sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.55, for a total value of $1,014,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 13.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watsco

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,425 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP lifted its stake in Watsco by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP now owns 919 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its stake in Watsco by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in Watsco by 0.5% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 8,383 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,554,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Watsco by 2.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 1,870 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $570,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.13% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Company Profile

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Watsco, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes air conditioning, heating, refrigeration equipment, and related parts and supplies. The company distributes equipment comprising residential ducted and ductless air conditioners, such as gas, electric, and oil furnaces; commercial air conditioning and heating equipment systems; and other specialized equipment.