Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Purchased by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 18.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,807 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,719 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.19% of Watts Water Technologies worth $13,294,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Freedom Day Solutions LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 20.9% during the fourth quarter. Freedom Day Solutions LLC now owns 10,506 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,815 shares in the last quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,576,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,604,000. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,435 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $18,633,000 after purchasing an additional 11,715 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $494,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Watts Water Technologies news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total transaction of $307,207.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Watts Water Technologies news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total transaction of $307,207.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.50, for a total value of $498,750.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,706,018. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,113 shares of company stock worth $1,023,106. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE WTS opened at $203.26 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $156.29 and a 1-year high of $219.52. The company has a market cap of $6.77 billion, a PE ratio of 25.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $203.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $196.92.

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

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms 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 company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $206.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.20.

About Watts Water Technologies

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.