Baskin Financial Services Inc. Has $33.08 Million Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Baskin Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,242 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 833 shares during the quarter. Watsco makes up 2.7% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Baskin Financial Services Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Watsco worth $33,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. SageView Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at about $321,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Watsco by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,265,589 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,399,207,000 after buying an additional 55,119 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Watsco by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 15,522 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,651,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at $201,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in Watsco by 38.3% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 957 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $413,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Watsco from $522.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Watsco from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st.

Watsco Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of WSO traded up $9.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $502.01. The stock had a trading volume of 36,441 shares, compared to its average volume of 289,459. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $338.58 and a 1-year high of $520.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.19 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $479.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $471.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 3.21 and a quick ratio of 1.55.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The construction company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by ($0.21). Watsco had a net margin of 7.02% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 16th. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.63%.

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.