MJP Associates Inc. ADV Makes New Investment in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

MJP Associates Inc. ADV bought a new position in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 619 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $236,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its stake in Watsco by 78.1% during the first quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 114 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watsco during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Watsco during the second quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 89.49% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Watsco from $375.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Mizuho started coverage on Watsco in a research report on Monday, July 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $360.00 price objective for the company. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a research note on Monday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Watsco from $305.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Watsco from $323.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $365.67.

Watsco Trading Up 1.2 %

WSO stock traded up $4.22 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $356.88. The stock had a trading volume of 62,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 321,879. The firm has a market cap of $13.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.78, a PEG ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco, Inc. has a twelve month low of $228.61 and a twelve month high of $383.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $360.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $342.26.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The construction company reported $4.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.87 by ($0.45). Watsco had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 22.94%. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.93 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 31st. Investors of record on Monday, July 17th were given a $2.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 14th. This represents a $9.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is 66.08%.

Watsco Profile

Watsco, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution of air conditioning, heating, refrigeration equipment, and related parts and supplies. 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.