Bank of New York Mellon Corp Has $91.59 Million Stake in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 1.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 251,778 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,422 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.62% of Watsco worth $91,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSO. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Watsco by 103.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,642,893 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,564,423,000 after purchasing an additional 2,356,998 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,559,965 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $525,634,000 after buying an additional 46,799 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,238,121 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $500,572,000 after acquiring an additional 16,595 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 638,014 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $214,373,000 after acquiring an additional 5,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Watsco by 60,779.4% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 599,662 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $202,056,000 after acquiring an additional 598,677 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $374.02 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $387.43 and a 200-day moving average of $393.17. The company has a market cap of $15.21 billion, a PE ratio of 31.04 and a beta of 1.02. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $323.05 and a one year high of $494.94.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.14. Watsco had a return on equity of 15.31% and a net margin of 6.85%.The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.93 earnings per share. Watsco’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 16th will be paid a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WSO shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Stephens upped their price target on Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on Watsco in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $385.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $402.71.

About Watsco

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.