D.A. Davidson & CO. Has $4.33 Million Stock Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,139 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $4,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Watsco in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Watsco by 57.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 90 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Watsco in the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total transaction of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 12.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $515.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $20.82 billion, a PE ratio of 38.91 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $484.99 and a 200-day moving average of $491.92. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $377.92 and a 52-week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 7.04%. On average, research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Raymond James initiated coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $495.00.

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.