Brokerages Set Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) PT at $334.11

Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $334.1111.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WTS. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $320.00 to $389.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company set a $275.00 target price on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $288.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WTS opened at $329.92 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $295.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $282.41. The firm has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.24. Watts Water Technologies has a 1 year low of $177.59 and a 1 year high of $345.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The technology company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.26. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 13.98%.The company had revenue of $625.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $610.40 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 605 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.78, for a total value of $167,451.90. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 13,412 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,173.36. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 5,025 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.08, for a total value of $1,613,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 12,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,944,146.72. This trade represents a 29.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,386 shares of company stock valued at $3,892,936. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,896 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $799,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,008 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $830,000 after purchasing an additional 936 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 37.2% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,969 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,824,000 after purchasing an additional 8,671 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $392,000. Finally, Zacks Investment Management boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 17,015 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,696,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Watts Water Technologies

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company’s product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.