Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Stake Lessened by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 2.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 228,290 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 5,246 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $66,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Advyzon Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC now owns 843 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 4,163 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. now owns 648 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $179,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,510 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WTS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $358.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, May 8th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $360.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays upgraded Watts Water Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $317.00 to $414.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $379.00 to $403.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $345.30.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total value of $679,357.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,697,863. The trade was a 20.12% 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, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total transaction of $123,232.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,668.82. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 0.0%

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $341.36 on Thursday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.06 and a 12 month high of $394.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market cap of $11.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $334.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $313.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.32. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The firm had revenue of $677.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $638.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company’s product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.