Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $220.00.

Several brokerages have recently commented on WTS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WTS. Andina Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $342,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,950 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,616,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,410 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,541,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,496 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $213.89 on Wednesday. Watts Water Technologies has a one year low of $175.37 and a one year high of $232.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $208.31 and a 200-day moving average of $203.57. The company has a market capitalization of $7.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.55.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies will post 8.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is 20.62%.

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.