Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS – Get Rating) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $151.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $174.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $144.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 10th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $148.57.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $164.94 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.00. Watts Water Technologies has a 52 week low of $116.31 and a 52 week high of $181.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $163.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.72.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The technology company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $471.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $473.29 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.16% and a return on equity of 19.77%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies will post 7.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 9,254 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.76, for a total value of $1,570,959.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 175,970 shares in the company, valued at $29,872,667.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 15,000 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.05, for a total transaction of $2,490,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,811,750. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 9,254 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.76, for a total value of $1,570,959.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 175,970 shares in the company, valued at $29,872,667.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 25,989 shares of company stock worth $4,353,293 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTS. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 80.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 184 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 141.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 176 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 256.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 310 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. 74.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Watts Water Technologies

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Watts Water Technologies, Inc engages in the manufacture and provision of products for water conservation, safety, and flow control. It operates through the following geographic segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa. Its services include plumbing and flow control solutions, water quality and conditioning, water reuse and drainage, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, and municipal waterworks.