Shashank Patel Sells 8,000 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Stock

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $1,960,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,754 shares in the company, valued at $674,730. The trade was a 74.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE WTS opened at $240.82 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.37 and a 12 month high of $248.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market capitalization of $8.02 billion, a PE ratio of 27.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $207.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $208.87.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $558.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $547.58 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.33 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. This is a boost from Watts Water Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTS. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 57.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 225 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 329.1% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 236 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $219.00 to $229.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $222.00.

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.