Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,916 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,674 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.12% of Watsco worth $23,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,618,109 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,714,586,000 after buying an additional 52,127 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $649,957,000 after purchasing an additional 118,713 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Watsco by 5.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $577,350,000 after purchasing an additional 65,846 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 9.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 704,330 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $345,783,000 after purchasing an additional 63,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Markel Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 590,500 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $279,832,000 after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE WSO opened at $477.78 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $496.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $499.43. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $396.82 and a one year high of $571.42. The company has a market capitalization of $19.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.06 and a beta of 1.00.

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

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $3.00 per share. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.70. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is 81.51%.

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.