UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Has $2.34 Million Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp lifted its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,928 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 26 shares during the quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp’s holdings in Watsco were worth $2,335,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 329.3% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 249 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in Watsco by 35.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 16,219 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,978,000 after buying an additional 4,204 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 90.0% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 10,632 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,230,000 after buying an additional 5,036 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 3,571.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $560,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Watsco by 12.5% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,700 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on WSO. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James began coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $486.25.

Watsco Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE WSO opened at $517.72 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.07 and a beta of 0.92. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $396.82 and a 12-month high of $571.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $494.88 and its 200-day moving average is $497.64.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 7.04%. The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Equities analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend 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%.

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.