Virginia Halloran Sells 605 Shares of Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Stock

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) CAO Virginia Halloran sold 605 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.78, for a total transaction of $167,451.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,712,173.36. This trade represents a 4.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $281.25 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market cap of $9.38 billion, a PE ratio of 28.92, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s fifty day moving average is $274.23 and its 200 day moving average is $267.04. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $177.59 and a 52 week high of $287.89.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The technology company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.21. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.31% and a net margin of 13.79%.The firm had revenue of $611.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $576.20 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.47%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 156.9% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 131 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stance Capital LLC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the third quarter worth approximately $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WTS shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Monday. Finally, Zacks Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $279.25.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, supplies products and solutions that manage and conserve the flow of fluids and energy into, through, and out of buildings in the commercial, industrial, and residential markets in the Americas, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa.