Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $340.20.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and set a $358.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, May 8th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $360.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Barclays upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $317.00 to $414.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $379.00 price objective on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total transaction of $679,357.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,697,863. This trade represents a 20.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total transaction of $123,232.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,814 shares in the company, valued at $561,668.82. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Watts Water Technologies

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WTS. Advyzon Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC now owns 843 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 4,163 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. now owns 648 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $179,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,510 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $349.39 on Thursday. Watts Water Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $242.77 and a fifty-two week high of $394.54. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $329.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a market cap of $11.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.97, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.14.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $677.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.13 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The firm’s revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies will post 12.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

About Watts Water Technologies

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.