3,873 Shares in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Acquired by Fiducient Advisors LLC

Fiducient Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,873 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,835,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Watsco by 76.2% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 148 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $486.25.

Watsco Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $509.76 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $496.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $498.92. The company has a market cap of $20.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.47 and a beta of 1.00. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $396.82 and a 12 month high of $571.42.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 90.57%.

About Watsco

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.