North Growth Management Ltd. Purchases 5,000 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

North Growth Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 13.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 41,000 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares during the period. North Growth Management Ltd.’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $8,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 520.5% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 273 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total transaction of $4,415,882.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 176,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,356,749. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,710 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.16, for a total transaction of $316,623.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,132,302.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total transaction of $4,415,882.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 176,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,356,749. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,999 shares of company stock worth $7,299,786 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of WTS opened at $211.98 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $7.07 billion, a PE ratio of 25.42, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.90. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $175.37 and a 12-month high of $219.52. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $201.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $197.19.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The business had revenue of $543.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $541.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.04 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 20.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $200.25.

About Watts Water Technologies

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.