Bank of New York Mellon Corp Sells 5,246 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 2.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 228,290 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 5,246 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.68% of Watts Water Technologies worth $66,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WTS. Boston Partners grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 907,336 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $253,211,000 after buying an additional 19,247 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 832,148 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $229,721,000 after purchasing an additional 25,501 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 522,624 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $144,261,000 after acquiring an additional 1,418 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 34.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 469,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $131,124,000 after purchasing an additional 120,090 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $100,627,000. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total transaction of $123,232.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $561,668.82. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total transaction of $679,357.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,697,863. This represents a 20.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $341.36 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $334.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $313.90. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $249.06 and a 52 week high of $394.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.14.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.37 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $379.00 to $403.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings downgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $358.00 price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $360.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $345.30.

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.