Watsco (NYSE:WSO) Price Target Raised to $370.00

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $360.00 to $370.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the construction company’s stock.

WSO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group started coverage on Watsco in a report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 price target for the company. Wolfe Research set a $349.00 price objective on shares of Watsco in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Watsco from $400.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Watsco in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $404.14.

Watsco Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Watsco stock opened at $381.78 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $15.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.83 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $349.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $388.96. Watsco has a 52-week low of $323.05 and a 52-week high of $535.40.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The construction company reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter. Watsco had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Watsco will post 14.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $3.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 93.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watsco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Watsco during the second quarter worth $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its position in shares of Watsco by 2,366.7% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 74 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Watsco by 242.9% during the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 72 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watsco during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Watsco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

About Watsco

Watsco, Inc is the largest distributor of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) equipment, parts and supplies in the United States. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company operates a network of more than 600 branches across the continental U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Watsco serves residential and commercial contractors by providing essential components for climate control systems, including air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, coils, refrigerants, controls and electrical and piping supplies.

Founded in 1947, Watsco has grown from a single regional distributor into an industry leader through a combination of organic expansion, acquisitions and strategic partnerships with original equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, Trane, Goodman and Lennox.