Park Avenue Securities LLC Has $771,000 Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 2.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,784 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $771,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 53.1% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 35.0% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 108 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in Watsco by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 80 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Lincoln National Corp grew its stake in Watsco by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 728 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Watsco by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 98 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Stock Performance

WSO opened at $467.66 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $18.85 billion, a PE ratio of 35.97 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $466.39 and a 200-day moving average of $428.95. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $337.58 and a 52-week high of $493.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.92.

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

Watsco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 83.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.85, for a total transaction of $366,759.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $838,714.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.85, for a total transaction of $366,759.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $838,714.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John Alexander Macdonald sold 5,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.41, for a total value of $2,487,830.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Watsco 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.