Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $187.48, but opened at $181.60. Watts Water Technologies shares last traded at $188.74, with a volume of 236,047 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.00.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $209.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $208.11. The stock has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95. 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 (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, research analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Watts Water Technologies

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,463,375 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $500,804,000 after acquiring an additional 386,333 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $60,887,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted 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 valued at $85,798,000 after buying an additional 194,033 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $23,044,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 36,711.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 56,690 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,560,000 after purchasing an additional 56,536 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.