Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Shares Acquired by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO - Get Rating) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 293,723 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,191 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.76% of Watsco worth $73,254,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watsco by 73.4% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 163 shares of the construction company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 319 shares of the construction company's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.73% of the company's stock.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WSO. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $315.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $331.00 to $380.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 19th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watsco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $354.14.

Watsco stock traded up $4.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $349.25. 54,281 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 334,322. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $328.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $298.47. The firm has a market cap of $13.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.49 and a beta of 0.91. Watsco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $220.68 and a fifty-two week high of $356.60.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO - Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 20th. The construction company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.58. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 8.19% and a return on equity of 24.40%. Watsco's revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.90 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Watsco, Inc. will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 17th were issued a $2.45 dividend. This represents a $9.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 14th. Watsco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.89%.

Watsco, Inc engages in the distribution of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration equipment, and related parts and supplies. Its products include residential central air conditioners, gas, electric & oil furnaces, commercial air conditioning and heating equipment, and other specialized equipment and parts, including replacement compressors, evaporator coils, motors and other component parts and supplies, including thermostats, insulation material, refrigerants, ductwork, grills, registers, sheet metal, tools, copper tubing, concrete pads, tape, adhesives, and other ancillary supplies.

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