Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Sold by Inspire Investing LLC

Inspire Investing LLC lessened its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,151 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 91 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $1,967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 2,999 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,475,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. My Legacy Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. My Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 687 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $329,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in Watsco by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 94 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 952 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 115 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:WSO opened at $505.84 on Thursday. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $373.33 and a twelve month high of $571.41. The company has a 50-day moving average of $506.37 and a 200-day moving average of $492.88. The firm has a market cap of $20.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.09 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.35 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 83.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $488.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watsco news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

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.