Analysts Set Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) Price Target at $409.00

Watsco, Inc. (NYSE:WSO) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $409.00.

WSO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wolfe Research set a $349.00 target price on shares of Watsco in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Watsco in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho set a $425.00 price objective on Watsco in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Watsco from $460.00 to $370.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Watsco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watsco

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSO. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watsco by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 710 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Watsco by 7.1% in the third quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 454 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $184,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Watsco by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,559 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $525,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its position in Watsco by 0.7% during the second quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,700 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,076,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Watsco by 6.0% during the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 601 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.71% of the company’s stock.

Watsco News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Watsco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell meaningfully in February (shares short down ~12.4% to ~3.08M, ~8.7% of float, short-interest ratio ~7.8 days), reducing a portion of the downside squeeze risk and signaling some bearish positions being covered.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised a few quarterly estimates — notably Q3 2027 to $4.77 (from $4.64) and Q4 2027 to $2.42 (from $2.27) — suggesting pockets of stronger expected demand in later 2027 that could support forward valuation if trends persist.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks published a FY2028 estimate of $15.63/share and maintained a “Hold” rating; the shop’s revisions are mixed overall, so this is more informational than a directional endorsement by itself.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple near-term cuts from Zacks: Q1 2026 trimmed to $1.74 (from $2.00), Q2 2026 to $4.27 (from $4.53), Q3 2026 to $4.22 (from $4.27), Q1 2027 to $1.89 (from $2.07) and Q2 2027 to $4.74 (from $4.97); FY2027 was nudged down to $13.83 (from $13.95). These downgrades to near-term earnings expectations are likely the primary reason for intraday weakness.
• Negative Sentiment: Negative press/analysis may amplify selling pressure — e.g., a recent MSN piece arguing to avoid WSO and recommending an alternative. 3 reasons to avoid WSO and 1 stock to buy instead

Watsco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSO opened at $374.03 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $392.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $377.01. Watsco has a 1-year low of $323.05 and a 1-year high of $521.70. The company has a market cap of $15.17 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89 and a beta of 1.03.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.94 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. Watsco had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 15.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.37 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Watsco will post 14.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watsco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th were issued a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 16th. Watsco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.09%.

Watsco Company Profile

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.