Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 2,172 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC cut its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 31.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,730 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 2,172 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 660.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $113,000 after buying an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $205,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter valued at about $231,000. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $925,700.41. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. The trade was a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

WTS opened at $206.29 on Wednesday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $175.37 and a 12-month high of $232.60. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $211.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $208.30. The company has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 12.93%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WTS. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.00.

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.