US Bancorp DE Purchases 122 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

US Bancorp DE boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,903 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 122 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $2,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WTS. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 60.3% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 520,189 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $107,778,000 after acquiring an additional 195,778 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1,070.6% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 209,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $38,324,000 after purchasing an additional 191,146 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 171.7% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 139,100 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $25,507,000 after buying an additional 87,900 shares during the period. Natixis lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 20,322.5% during the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 61,676 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $13,109,000 after buying an additional 61,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $9,794,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 6.1 %

Shares of NYSE WTS opened at $212.08 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a PE ratio of 25.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $175.37 and a 12-month high of $219.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $200.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $197.22.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 12.37%. The company had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $541.83 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.04 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WTS shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a 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, Northcoast Research upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $200.25.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 3,429 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.65, for a total value of $667,454.85. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 14,064 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,737,557.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Watts Water Technologies news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 3,429 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.65, for a total transaction of $667,454.85. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 14,064 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,737,557.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was 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 directly owns 11,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,132,302.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,454 shares of company stock valued at $1,042,646 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

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.