Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Buys New Stake in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 3,000 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,250,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WSO. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bayban acquired a new stake in Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new stake in Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Watsco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $314.48 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $364.54 and a 200-day moving average of $386.25. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $300.66 and a 52 week high of $459.00. The company has a market capitalization of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27 and a beta of 1.05.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $4.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.41 by ($0.41). Watsco had a net margin of 6.53% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The business had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 114.48%.

Watsco News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Watsco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2028 EPS forecast to $15.26 from $14.93, suggesting stronger long-term earnings potential. Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an Overweight rating on Watsco. Stephens Reaffirms Overweight Rating for Watsco
• Neutral Sentiment: The analyst revisions were mixed: Zacks increased estimates for Q1 2027 and Q1 2028, but maintained its FY2027 EPS forecast at $13.53 and FY2028 forecast at $15.26. The current full-year consensus remains $12.43 per share.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered its forecasts for Q3 2026 EPS to $4.21 from $4.29, Q4 2026 to $2.13 from $2.15, FY2026 to $12.21 from $12.56, Q2 2027 to $4.61 from $4.75, Q3 2027 to $4.65 from $4.69, Q4 2027 to $2.33 from $2.34, and FY2027 to $13.53 from $13.70. The broad downward revisions indicate softer near- and medium-term earnings expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: The latest quarterly results showed weakening profitability: EPS declined from $4.52 a year earlier and missed analysts’ estimates, while revenue increased only 2.1% year over year. Watsco is trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and near its 52-week low, which may amplify investor caution.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WSO. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of Watsco from $385.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $395.50.

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.