Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Major Shareholder Timothy Horne Sells 6,994 Shares

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) major shareholder Timothy Horne sold 6,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.65, for a total value of $1,948,878.10. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,410,621.90. This represents a 23.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $271.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.07 billion, a PE ratio of 29.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $277.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $259.76. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.59 and a twelve month high of $287.89.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The technology company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.29 by $0.21. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.63% and a return on equity of 18.11%. The company had revenue of $611.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $576.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Watts Water Technologies has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 21.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $264.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Perbak Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 55.4% in the 3rd quarter. Perbak Capital Partners LLP now owns 4,996 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 907,336 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $253,211,000 after buying an additional 19,247 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 34.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 469,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $131,124,000 after buying an additional 120,090 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 26.9% during the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 53,674 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $14,991,000 after acquiring an additional 11,363 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 223.0% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 202,250 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $56,484,000 after acquiring an additional 139,637 shares during the last quarter. 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.