Swiss National Bank Sells 300 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 53,500 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.16% of Watts Water Technologies worth $11,085,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,000. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $215.17 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.37 and a 1 year high of $219.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $204.72 and its 200 day moving average is $197.73. The company has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a PE ratio of 25.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $543.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $541.83 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 12.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.04 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WTS shares. Robert W. Baird decreased 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. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” 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 note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $200.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Watts Water Technologies news, CFO Shashank Patel sold 4,569 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.10, for a total value of $955,377.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 15,635 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,269,278.50. This represents a 22.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 2,607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.72, for a total transaction of $554,561.04. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 11,457 shares in the company, valued at $2,437,133.04. This represents a 18.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 32,974 shares of company stock valued at $6,924,594 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies 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.