Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Sold by Mirova US LLC

Mirova US LLC reduced its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 703,906 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 20,476 shares during the period. Watts Water Technologies comprises 1.7% of Mirova US LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Mirova US LLC owned 2.11% of Watts Water Technologies worth $143,104,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $202,425,000 after buying an additional 8,314 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 741,743 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $153,708,000 after buying an additional 30,688 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 323,007 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $65,667,000 after buying an additional 19,598 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 319,703 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $64,996,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 267,439 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $55,411,000 after buying an additional 12,159 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total value of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 1.4 %

WTS stock opened at $213.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.65. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $175.37 and a 1-year high of $232.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $210.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $207.01. The firm has a market cap of $7.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.62, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. Research analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.79%.

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.