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

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 25.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 86,700 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 29,900 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $17,626,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 329.1% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 236 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 366 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 660.3% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $115,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the firm’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 value of $925,700.41. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WTS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started 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 for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.00.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE WTS opened at $193.64 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $6.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.37 and a 12 month high of $232.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.65. The company has a 50-day moving average of $207.70 and a 200-day moving average of $207.36.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. As a group, equities analysts predict 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 given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.