New York State Teachers Retirement System Decreases Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 41,576 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.12% of Watts Water Technologies worth $8,662,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 174 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of 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. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2,857.1% during the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 207 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.9 %

WTS opened at $202.32 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.94. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.29 and a 52 week high of $219.52. The business’s 50 day moving average is $204.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $195.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The technology company reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $547.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $532.58 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 12.75%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.52 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 18.41%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total value of $307,207.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,994,865.98. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 764 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.00, for a total value of $152,036.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,236 shares in the company, valued at $2,832,964. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total value of $307,207.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at $2,994,865.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,113 shares of company stock valued at $1,023,106. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WTS. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $191.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $199.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $190.60.

Watts Water Technologies 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.