Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Shares Acquired by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 12.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,311 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,718 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.18% of Watts Water Technologies worth $17,508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Future Fund LLC raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 26.1% in the 1st quarter. Future Fund LLC now owns 9,438 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,740,000 after purchasing an additional 1,953 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 211.3% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 165 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 13,134 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,813,000 after purchasing an additional 1,404 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 20,071.4% during the 1st quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 141,200 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,989,000 after purchasing an additional 140,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nwam LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the first quarter valued at $206,000. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $323.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays raised Watts Water Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $317.00 to $414.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $345.30.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS opened at $342.90 on Friday. 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 capitalization of $11.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s fifty day moving average is $334.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $314.35. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $249.06 and a 1 year high of $394.54.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $677.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $638.13 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 14.32% and a return on equity of 18.92%. The business’s revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.37 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $561,668.82. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total value of $679,357.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,697,863. This trade represents a 20.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Profile

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.