Brown Advisory Inc. Purchases 2,176 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 28.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,898 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,176 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $4,371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 0.5% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,557,610 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $791,734,000 after acquiring an additional 7,760 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,485,996 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $656,036,000 after purchasing an additional 31,484 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 496,428 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $252,335,000 after purchasing an additional 18,958 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 62.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 468,875 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $238,329,000 after purchasing an additional 180,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hamlin Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 357,837 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $158,028,000 after buying an additional 6,566 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $340.64 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $323.05 and a 52-week high of $535.40. The company has a market cap of $13.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.61 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $361.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $406.50.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The construction company reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter. Watsco had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.04%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 16th were paid a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 93.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WSO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Watsco from $505.00 to $460.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Watsco from $425.00 to $390.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Zacks Research cut Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Watsco from $525.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Watsco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $435.00.

Watsco 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.