Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Analysts

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $367.70.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WTS. Robert W. Baird set a $405.00 price objective on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $374.00 price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barclays increased their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $414.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 3,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.72, for a total transaction of $1,291,078.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,096 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.55, for a total value of $394,066.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,828,579.85. This represents a 12.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 832,148 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $229,721,000 after acquiring an additional 25,501 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.7% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 545,404 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $158,325,000 after purchasing an additional 34,381 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $100,627,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 79.8% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 218,832 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $63,525,000 after buying an additional 97,115 shares during the period. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt increased its stake 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 buying an additional 140,500 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of WTS opened at $363.75 on Tuesday. Watts Water Technologies has a 12-month low of $260.00 and a 12-month high of $394.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $362.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $334.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.32. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 14.34% and a return on equity of 19.16%. The company had revenue of $763.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.09 earnings per share. Watts Water Technologies’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies will post 12.75 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.01%.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc designs and manufactures products that help manage the safety, efficiency, and quality of water in residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial systems. Its offerings are used in plumbing, heating, water distribution, and drainage applications.

The company’s product portfolio includes backflow prevention devices, pressure regulators, safety and relief valves, water quality and conditioning equipment, leak detection products, drainage systems, and hydronic and HVAC components.