Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Holdings Trimmed by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lowered its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 384,412 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 74,457 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned 0.95% of Watsco worth $189,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 48,984.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 233,643 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $114,924,000 after purchasing an additional 233,167 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 2,128.1% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 107,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,880,000 after purchasing an additional 102,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $577,350,000 after purchasing an additional 65,846 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,252,822 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $616,357,000 after purchasing an additional 62,041 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total transaction of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Watsco stock opened at $465.23 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $510.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $491.78. The company has a market cap of $18.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.95 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco, Inc. has a 1 year low of $373.33 and a 1 year high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.35 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Northcoast Research started coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company.

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.