Bank of New York Mellon Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp reduced its position in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 342,077 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 31,754 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.85% of Watsco worth $162,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WSO. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 4,037 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,985,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 14,996 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,378,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,888 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $929,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 83.0% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 410 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR lifted its position in shares of Watsco by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 902 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 89.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of Watsco stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE WSO opened at $503.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $20.34 billion, a PE ratio of 38.02 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco, Inc. has a one year low of $388.47 and a one year high of $571.41. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $485.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $493.29.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 17.59%. Research analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s payout ratio is 81.51%.

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.