William Blair Brokers Increase Earnings Estimates for Watsco

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) – William Blair upped their Q1 2025 earnings estimates for Watsco in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, February 18th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now anticipates that the construction company will earn $2.35 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $2.22. The consensus estimate for Watsco’s current full-year earnings is $14.50 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Watsco’s Q3 2025 earnings at $5.01 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $14.90 EPS.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of Watsco in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watsco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $495.00.

Watsco Trading Down 3.7 %

Shares of WSO opened at $511.11 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $20.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.57 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $484.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $491.75. Watsco has a 1 year low of $373.33 and a 1 year high of $571.41.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.24. Watsco had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 7.04%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watsco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Watsco by 10.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,624,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,782,651,000 after purchasing an additional 346,470 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Watsco by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,618,109 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,714,586,000 after buying an additional 52,127 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Watsco by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371,535 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $649,957,000 after buying an additional 118,713 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,173,762 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $577,350,000 after buying an additional 65,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watsco by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 725,186 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $343,168,000 after buying an additional 20,856 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Barry S. Logan sold 10,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.21, for a total value of $5,589,293.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 12.86% of the company’s stock.

Watsco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $2.70 dividend. This represents a $10.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. Watsco’s payout ratio is currently 81.51%.

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.