Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 3,253 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 4.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 69,933 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,253 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $25,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Bayban bought a new position in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $393.45 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $323.05 and a 52 week high of $494.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65 and a beta of 1.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $392.67 and its 200 day moving average is $391.68.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 15.31% and a net margin of 6.85%.Watsco’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.93 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be given a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Watsco’s payout ratio is presently 109.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on WSO. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Watsco from $370.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $385.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watsco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $402.71.

Watsco Company Profile

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.