Virtu Financial LLC Invests $1.06 Million in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,289 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,060,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter worth $102,958,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 89.0% in the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 1,317 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $564,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 15,522 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,651,000 after buying an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 7,520 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,222,000 after buying an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Watsco by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 165,951 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $71,105,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on WSO. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $460.00 to $522.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $447.67.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $486.54 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $478.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $459.99. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $338.58 and a 52-week high of $520.41. The company has a market cap of $19.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.43 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.21.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.70 by ($0.21). Watsco had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 7.02%. The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 16th were given a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 16th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.08%.

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.