Barclays PLC Sells 74,457 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Barclays PLC trimmed its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 16.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 384,412 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 74,457 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Watsco were worth $189,084,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WSO. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after acquiring an additional 346,470 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 48,984.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 233,643 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $114,924,000 after acquiring an additional 233,167 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 2,128.1% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 107,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,880,000 after acquiring an additional 102,640 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $577,350,000 after acquiring an additional 65,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Watsco by 5.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 62,041 shares in the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of Watsco stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 12.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WSO shares. Northcoast Research started coverage on Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

Watsco Stock Down 0.3 %

WSO opened at $465.23 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.95 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $510.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $491.78. Watsco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $373.33 and a 12-month high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.77%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.35 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current 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 issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.