Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Shares Sold by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC decreased its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 51.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,691 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,780 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 10.2% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 80.2% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 98,878 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,163,000 after purchasing an additional 7,537 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 94.7% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 3,002 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $738,000 after purchasing an additional 1,460 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, 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 value of $167,451.90. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,712,173.36. This trade represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 6,994 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the insider owned 23,006 shares in the company, valued at $6,410,621.90. This represents a 23.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 15,605 shares of company stock worth $4,296,387 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $308.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.24. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $177.59 and a 1-year high of $312.00. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $286.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $277.84.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The technology company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $611.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $576.20 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.31% and a net margin of 13.79%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.03 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp raised 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, January 21st. Zacks Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $288.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $275.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.57.

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.