Arizona State Retirement System Has $1.40 Million Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,656 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $1,404,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth $26,000. Gradient Investments LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the second quarter worth $31,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 502.7% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 223 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 520.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 273 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth $53,000. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total transaction of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,755 shares in the company, valued at $512,237.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total transaction of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,755 shares in the company, valued at $512,237.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,710 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.16, for a total transaction of $316,623.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,132,302.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE WTS opened at $192.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.50. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $197.78. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $167.87 and a twelve month high of $219.52. The stock has a market cap of $6.42 billion, a PE ratio of 23.88, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.89.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The technology company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.13. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The business had revenue of $597.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $589.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 21.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on WTS. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th.

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.