Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Grows Stock Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 25.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 137,173 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 27,929 shares during the quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. owned 0.41% of Watts Water Technologies worth $29,156,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 174 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2,857.1% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 207 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $212.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $201.50.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of WTS stock traded down $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $196.36. The company had a trading volume of 168,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 183,911. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $193.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $199.86. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $167.87 and a 52-week high of $219.52. The company has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The technology company reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $570.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $547.20 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.53% and a return on equity of 19.61%. Watts Water Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.92 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were issued a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Watts Water Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 21.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,051 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.51, for a total value of $442,011.01. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,850,335.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.51, for a total value of $442,011.01. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,850,335.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 2,194 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.39, for a total transaction of $470,371.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $601,578.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,753 shares of company stock worth $1,236,753. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.