Strive Asset Management LLC Invests $4.04 Million in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,000 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,043,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in Watsco by 89.2% in the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 37,808 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $15,286,000 after buying an additional 17,820 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Watsco by 47.7% during the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 124,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $50,452,000 after buying an additional 40,326 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Watsco by 577.9% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 19,957 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $8,069,000 after acquiring an additional 17,013 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 237.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,629 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 3,961 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of Watsco during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,392,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research set a $349.00 price target on Watsco in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Watsco from $460.00 to $370.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Mizuho set a $425.00 target price on Watsco in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group began coverage on Watsco in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Watsco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $409.00.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $411.45 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $323.05 and a one year high of $533.07. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $386.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $377.85. The stock has a market cap of $16.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.98 and a beta of 1.03.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.94 by ($0.26). Watsco had a return on equity of 15.49% and a net margin of 6.87%.The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.37 earnings per share. Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th were issued a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 16th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.09%.

About Watsco

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.