Teacher Retirement System of Texas Invests $2.59 Million in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,092 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,588,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Watsco in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. City Holding Co. bought a new position in Watsco during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new stake in shares of Watsco in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Watsco by 260.0% in the 1st quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 72 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WSO. Mizuho set a $490.00 price objective on Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Watsco from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $455.00 to $450.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $484.17.

Watsco Stock Up 2.8%

NYSE WSO opened at $471.81 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $453.06 and its 200 day moving average is $477.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.11 billion, a PE ratio of 36.27 and a beta of 1.04. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $418.31 and a twelve month high of $571.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.36). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.13% and a net margin of 6.98%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.17 EPS. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 16th will be issued a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.24%.

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.