Fifth Third Bancorp Purchases 45,972 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2,882.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,567 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,972 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Watsco were worth $17,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bayban bought a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watsco Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $393.45 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $323.05 and a 12 month high of $494.94. The stock has a market cap of $16.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.65 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $392.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $391.68.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.93 earnings per share. Watsco’s quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.66 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 109.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on WSO shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Stephens increased their target price 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 reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $385.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $402.71.

Watsco Profile

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.