Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Stock: Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Decreases Stake

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA trimmed its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 481,110 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 8,495 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $170,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 545,404 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $158,325,000 after purchasing an additional 34,381 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 79.8% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 218,832 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $63,525,000 after purchasing an additional 97,115 shares in the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 20,071.4% during the first quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 141,200 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,989,000 after buying an additional 140,500 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 58.7% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 135,140 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $39,230,000 after buying an additional 49,960 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 21.1% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 133,817 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $38,846,000 after buying an additional 23,300 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $346.79 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $11.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.00, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $262.64 and a 12-month high of $394.54. The business’s 50 day moving average is $355.42 and its 200 day moving average is $332.55.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The technology company reported $3.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $728.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $692.57 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 19.75% and a net margin of 16.00%. Watts Water Technologies’s revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.50 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 18.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $445.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $417.00 to $397.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $374.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $425.00 to $424.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.72, for a total value of $1,291,078.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,096 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.55, for a total transaction of $394,066.80. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,867 shares in the company, valued at $2,828,579.85. The trade was a 12.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc designs and manufactures products that help control the safety, flow, and quality of water in plumbing, heating, and water-treatment systems. Its products serve residential, commercial, and industrial applications.

The company’s offerings include backflow preventers, valves, water pressure regulators, drainage products, water-quality and treatment systems, and controls for heating and hot-water applications. It also provides solutions for water reuse and other water-management needs.

Founded in 1874 by Joseph Watts, the company traces its origins to the development of a water pressure regulator.