Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 97.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 266 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 10,589 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $55,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $695,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 4.6% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 47,339 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $9,808,000 after purchasing an additional 2,101 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $534,000. Zacks Investment Management boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 4.9% in the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 14,255 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,953,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $202,425,000 after purchasing an additional 8,314 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $202.02 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $208.76 and its 200 day moving average is $198.64. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $175.37 and a one year high of $222.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.55. The stock has a market cap of $6.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WTS shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $202.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Monica Barry sold 1,559 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.52, for a total transaction of $331,318.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $941,463.60. This trade represents a 26.03 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 3,429 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 14,064 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,737,557.60. This represents a 19.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,974 shares of company stock worth $6,924,594 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.