Stifel Nicolaus Raises Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Price Target to $290.00

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) had its target price upped by Stifel Nicolaus from $275.00 to $290.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the technology company’s stock.

Separately, Northcoast Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $234.20.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $251.38 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.39 billion, a PE ratio of 28.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $245.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $221.28. Watts Water Technologies has a 1 year low of $177.59 and a 1 year high of $260.93.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $558.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.58 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 13.07%. Watts Water Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.33 EPS. Analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.52 dividend. This is an increase from Watts Water Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.83%.

Insider Activity

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Monica Barry sold 768 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.40, for a total value of $188,467.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 6,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,530,314.40. This trade represents a 10.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.85, for a total value of $1,692,950.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,768 shares of company stock worth $3,841,417 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,470,140 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $503,711,000 after acquiring an additional 6,765 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 43.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 905,783 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $184,708,000 after acquiring an additional 273,628 shares in the last quarter. Mirova US LLC lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 748,328 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $184,006,000 after acquiring an additional 19,344 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 422,026 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $85,798,000 after acquiring an additional 194,033 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 398,341 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $80,983,000 after acquiring an additional 40,738 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.