Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Director Michael Dubose Sells 398 Shares of Stock

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Director Michael Dubose sold 398 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total value of $123,232.74. Following the sale, the director owned 1,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $561,668.82. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE WTS opened at $310.62 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.37 billion, a PE ratio of 28.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.20. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $237.15 and a one year high of $345.17. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $298.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $295.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 1.62.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $677.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.13 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.Watts Water Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.37 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 19.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on WTS. Zacks Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $323.00 to $317.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $267.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $318.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $379.00 price objective on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, May 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.44.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTS. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 82,602 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $23,979,000 after purchasing an additional 5,928 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 133,817 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $38,846,000 after purchasing an additional 23,300 shares during the period. Smith Group Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 6,688 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,941,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 52.2% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 948 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 26.5% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 32,791 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $9,519,000 after purchasing an additional 6,879 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

About Watts Water Technologies

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company’s product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.