AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Acquires 18,279 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc grew its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 15.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 139,157 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,279 shares during the period. Watsco comprises 0.9% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings in Watsco were worth $65,966,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in Watsco by 213.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 32,972 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,903,000 after purchasing an additional 22,446 shares during the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of Watsco by 60.7% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 6,497 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,010,000 after acquiring an additional 2,455 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. raised its position in shares of Watsco by 33.6% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 34,894 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $16,164,000 after acquiring an additional 8,775 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 400.0% in the second quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 3,000 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,297,000 after acquiring an additional 2,400 shares during the period. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Watsco in the second quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Stock Performance

Watsco stock opened at $494.93 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.25 and a beta of 0.95. Watsco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $373.33 and a 52-week high of $571.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $505.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $493.00.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.73 by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.77%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 13.03 EPS for the current year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a dividend of $2.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on WSO shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $488.33.

Insider Transactions at Watsco

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total transaction of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

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.