Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Trims Stock Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 3.1% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 32,200 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,030 shares during the period. Watsco accounts for about 2.4% of Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $14,916,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Watsco by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,721 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $737,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco by 157.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 6,374 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,731,000 after purchasing an additional 3,898 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 15,618 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,692,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in shares of Watsco by 89.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,890 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $810,000 after buying an additional 891 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 52,548 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,515,000 after buying an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSO has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Watsco from $460.00 to $522.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $469.80.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $495.98 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.21. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $478.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $465.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.01 billion, a PE ratio of 38.15 and a beta of 0.88. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $338.58 and a 52 week high of $520.41.

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

Watsco Company 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.