Integrity Alliance LLC. Makes New Investment in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Integrity Alliance LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 446 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 115.4% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO stock opened at $381.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.28 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $433.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $460.02. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $378.35 and a fifty-two week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.84 by ($0.32). Watsco had a return on equity of 16.96% and a net margin of 7.08%.The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.49 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 16th were issued a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 92.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $505.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $445.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target 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 assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $484.17.

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.