Schroder Investment Management Group Sells 2,340 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Schroder Investment Management Group reduced its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 47.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,627 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,340 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Watsco were worth $1,160,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 62.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 468,875 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $238,329,000 after acquiring an additional 180,951 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $331,000. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Watsco by 1.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 108,889 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,088,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Watsco by 23.1% during the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 16,218 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $8,244,000 after purchasing an additional 3,045 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco in the second quarter valued at $573,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Watsco from $525.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Watsco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Watsco from $425.00 to $390.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $435.00.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $348.14 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $362.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $407.68. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $323.05 and a twelve month high of $535.40. The firm has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20 and a beta of 1.01.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The construction company reported $3.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 16.48%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 16th were issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 16th. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 93.75%.

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.