Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Purchased by Port Capital LLC

Port Capital LLC grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 6.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 228,918 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,025 shares during the period. Watts Water Technologies comprises approximately 2.1% of Port Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Port Capital LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $47,430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Gradient Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 520.5% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 273 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 30.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 338 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WTS shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average 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 2,607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.72, for a total value of $554,561.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 11,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,437,133.04. This represents a 18.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total value of $4,415,882.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 176,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,356,749. This trade represents a 10.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,974 shares of company stock worth $6,924,594. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

WTS stock opened at $213.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $206.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.68. 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 $221.19.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The company had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $541.83 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.04 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. 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 (DPR) is presently 20.62%.

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.