William Blair Issues Negative Outlook for Watsco Earnings

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) – Equities researchers at William Blair decreased their Q3 2025 earnings per share estimates for Watsco in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, September 2nd. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the construction company will post earnings per share of $4.54 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $4.66. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.62 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco’s Q1 2026 earnings at $2.38 EPS.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on WSO. Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Watsco from $455.00 to $450.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $484.17.

Watsco Stock Performance

Watsco stock opened at $403.34 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $440.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $464.87. The stock has a market cap of $16.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.93 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco has a fifty-two week low of $390.36 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.84 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 16.96%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.49 earnings per share.

Institutional Trading of Watsco

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $498,000. Bridgefront Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $203,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Watsco by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 7,929 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,757,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares during the period. Crestline Management LP increased its position in shares of Watsco by 278.8% during the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 8,709 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,127,000 after acquiring an additional 6,410 shares during the period. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 3,357 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,591,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 16th were given a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 92.02%.

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.