Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Stock Rating Upgraded by Northcoast Research

Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $225.00 target price on the technology company’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on WTS. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $200.25.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

WTS stock opened at $195.66 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $200.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.14. Watts Water Technologies has a 12-month low of $175.37 and a 12-month high of $219.52. The firm has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $543.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $541.83 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 12.37%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is 20.62%.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total value of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,755 shares in the company, valued at $512,237.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total value of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $512,237.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 3,429 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.65, for a total value of $667,454.85. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 14,064 shares in the company, valued at $2,737,557.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,454 shares of company stock valued at $1,042,646. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Watts Water Technologies

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,366,000. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 64.9% during the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 71,555 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $13,121,000 after purchasing an additional 28,170 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter worth $2,897,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 54.9% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 44,840 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $9,348,000 after buying an additional 15,901 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 21.1% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,918 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $7,634,000 after acquiring an additional 6,255 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

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.