Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Stock Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 397.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,078 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,655 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $1,439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WTS. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 316,407 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $65,556,000 after buying an additional 9,148 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 267,439 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $55,411,000 after acquiring an additional 12,159 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $202,425,000 after acquiring an additional 8,314 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 35.2% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 23,507 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,779,000 after purchasing an additional 6,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 264.1% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,080 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $212.69 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.09 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $175.37 and a 12-month high of $232.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $211.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $207.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total value of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,204,038.57. The trade was a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, 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 objective on the stock. Four 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 stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.00.

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.