Watsco (NYSE:WSO) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wolfe Research set a $349.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Mizuho set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Watsco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $409.00.

Watsco Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $410.97 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $383.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $378.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.94 and a beta of 1.04. Watsco has a 52-week low of $323.05 and a 52-week high of $533.07.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 15.49%. The firm’s revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watsco will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSO. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 2,366.7% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 74 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 242.9% during the 2nd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 72 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Company 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.