William Blair Research Analysts Decrease Earnings Estimates for Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) – Analysts at William Blair reduced their Q1 2024 earnings estimates for Watsco in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, April 11th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the construction company will earn $2.40 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $2.46. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.21 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco’s FY2024 earnings at $15.40 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $18.69 EPS.

Separately, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $396.00.

Watsco Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Watsco stock opened at $417.71 on Friday. Watsco has a 12-month low of $309.17 and a 12-month high of $447.49. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $16.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50-day moving average of $408.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $397.08.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a $2.70 dividend. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 71.74%.

Institutional Trading of Watsco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. First PREMIER Bank acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.