Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Has $52.99 Million Holdings in Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 81.8% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 120,000 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 54,000 shares during the quarter. Watsco accounts for 1.7% of Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $52,994,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WSO. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in Watsco by 115.4% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new stake in Watsco during the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO stock opened at $378.90 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $397.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $438.69. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $350.00 and a twelve month high of $571.41. The company has a market capitalization of $15.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06 and a beta of 0.94.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.84 by ($0.32). Watsco had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 16.96%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 16th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the subject of a number of research reports. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Watsco from $450.00 to $425.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Watsco in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Watsco from $505.00 to $460.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Watsco from $425.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $447.50.

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.