PFW Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,144 Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

PFW Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 1,144 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $233,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WTS. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $68,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 76.7% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 394 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 24.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 392 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Monica Barry sold 1,559 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $941,463.60. This trade represents a 26.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 3,429 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were 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 trade represents a 19.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,974 shares of company stock valued at $6,924,594 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

WTS traded up $4.36 during trading on Monday, reaching $199.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 123,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 116,538. The company has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.94, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $200.30. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.37 and a 1 year high of $222.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company posted $2.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 20.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of 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 initiated coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.50.

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.