Richardson Financial Services Inc. Sells 40 Shares of Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO)

Richardson Financial Services Inc. reduced its stake in Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) by 17.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 185 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 40 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Watsco were worth $88,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in Watsco by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 327,729 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $155,387,000 after buying an additional 19,585 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watsco in the 4th quarter valued at about $249,000. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Watsco by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,236 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,273,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Watsco during the 4th quarter valued at about $90,000. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Watsco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,737,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $478.91 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $499.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $492.57. Watsco, Inc. has a 12 month low of $373.33 and a 12 month high of $571.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a PE ratio of 37.01 and a beta of 0.95.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $2.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $10.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Watsco from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report 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 issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $488.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watsco

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the firm’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 value of $5,589,293.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 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.