Redmond Asset Management LLC Buys 13,042 Shares of Watsco, Inc. $WSO

Redmond Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 77.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,897 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,042 shares during the quarter. Watsco comprises 2.6% of Redmond Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Redmond Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Watsco worth $10,074,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 638,014 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $214,373,000 after purchasing an additional 5,176 shares in the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in Watsco by 1,869.2% during the 4th quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 112,601 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $37,941,000 after purchasing an additional 106,883 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp increased its stake in Watsco by 84.2% during the 4th quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 2,383 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $803,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 264.6% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Price Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $381.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.64 and a beta of 1.12. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $323.05 and a 1-year high of $494.94. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $400.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $381.73.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The construction company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.14. Watsco had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 15.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.93 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 12.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 16th were issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 16th. This is a positive change from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Watsco’s payout ratio is 109.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Watsco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Stephens lifted their target price on Watsco from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Mizuho set a $425.00 target price on Watsco in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen raised Watsco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Watsco from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $399.83.

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.