International Assets Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

International Assets Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 99.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 527 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 233,116 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $247,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC raised its position in Watsco by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Watsco by 2,128.1% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 107,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,880,000 after purchasing an additional 102,640 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Watsco by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $577,350,000 after purchasing an additional 65,846 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Watsco by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,330 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $345,783,000 after purchasing an additional 63,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Watsco by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,252,822 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $616,357,000 after purchasing an additional 62,041 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Watsco in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSO opened at $475.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.77 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $510.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $492.04. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $373.33 and a 52-week high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.73 by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 6.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is 83.46%.

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.