Watsco (NYSE:WSO) Hits New 52-Week High at $476.67

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $476.67 and last traded at $474.60, with a volume of 7986 shares. The stock had previously closed at $472.35.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $500.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Watsco from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $404.25.

Watsco Stock Up 0.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $18.64 billion, a PE ratio of 36.06 and a beta of 0.86. The business has a fifty day moving average of $424.38 and a 200-day moving average of $404.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.92 and a quick ratio of 1.31.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.26 by ($0.09). Watsco had a net margin of 7.03% and a return on equity of 19.26%. The business had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.83 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $2.70 dividend. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watsco

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WSO. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth $751,000. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $536,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $4,070,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter worth about $2,516,000. Finally, Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 145.6% in the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 2,982 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,278,000 after buying an additional 1,768 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watsco Company Profile

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.