Quilter Plc Reduces Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Quilter Plc cut its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 15.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,019 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 4,455 shares during the period. Quilter Plc’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $6,987,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 156.9% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 131 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 31.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 258 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 474.6% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 339 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 138.4% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 329 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on WTS shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Zacks Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $340.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $288.57.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE WTS opened at $299.31 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $177.59 and a 52-week high of $306.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $280.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $274.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.83.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The technology company reported $2.50 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $611.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $576.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. Watts Water Technologies’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 21.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 6,994 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.65, for a total transaction of $1,948,878.10. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,410,621.90. This trade represents a 23.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 605 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,412 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,173.36. The trade was a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,605 shares of company stock worth $4,296,387. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company’s product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.