3,284 Shares in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Purchased by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 3,284 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $605,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WTS. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 98,060.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,963,213 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $360,701,000 after buying an additional 1,961,213 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,180,000. Robeco Schweiz AG bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,906,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 188.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 230,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,106,000 after purchasing an additional 150,400 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 161.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 228,077 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,837,000 after purchasing an additional 140,834 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 11th. StockNews.com cut shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $177.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $171.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $178.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, CFO Shashank Patel sold 2,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.14, for a total value of $444,167.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,583,378.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Shashank Patel sold 2,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.14, for a total value of $444,167.04. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,583,378.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 9,403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.36, for a total transaction of $1,771,149.08. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 17,404 shares in the company, valued at $3,278,217.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

WTS stock opened at $193.15 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.97. The stock has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.99. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $141.70 and a 1 year high of $199.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.72.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 1st. The technology company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.21. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.68% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The firm had revenue of $504.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $497.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.79 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 1st will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 30th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.56%.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc 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. The company offers residential and commercial flow control and protection products, including backflow preventers, water pressure regulators, temperature and pressure relief valves, thermostatic mixing valves, and leak detection and protection products for plumbing and hot water applications.