Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Acquired by O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 11.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,454 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WTS. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the fourth 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. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 660.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $205,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.00.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. The trade was a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

WTS opened at $179.94 on Wednesday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $175.37 and a twelve month high of $232.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.71, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $208.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $207.74.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.79%.

Watts Water Technologies 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.