Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Sells 1,097 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. trimmed its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,480 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,097 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Watsco worth $30,199,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crown Oak Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,057,000. Capital Advisors Inc. OK boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 85,280 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,540,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the period. BHK Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $396,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,070,000. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 14,956 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772 shares during the period. 89.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Watsco from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $398.00.

Watsco Stock Performance

NYSE:WSO opened at $396.92 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $15.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.06 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $408.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $398.50. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Watsco, Inc. has a 1-year low of $315.17 and a 1-year high of $447.49.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.44). The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Watsco had a return on equity of 21.36% and a net margin of 7.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.35 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Watsco Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This is a boost from Watsco’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.45. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 79.06%.

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.