Truist Financial Corp Sells 73 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Truist Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,091 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 73 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp owned about 0.14% of Watsco worth $24,462,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Watsco in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Watsco during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its position in Watsco by 53.1% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 75 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Performance

Shares of WSO stock opened at $447.64 on Tuesday. Watsco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $315.17 and a 52 week high of $451.29. The company has a market capitalization of $17.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $413.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $400.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.92.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.26 by ($0.09). Watsco had a return on equity of 19.26% and a net margin of 7.03%. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.83 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. This is a positive change from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Watsco from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watsco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $404.25.

About Watsco

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.