Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Stock Has Average Price Target of $371.90 According to Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy” for Watts Water Technologies, with six hold, four buy, and one strong-buy ratings. The average 12-month price target is $371.90, modestly above the reported $358.86 share price.
• Watts exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.66 in EPS versus the $3.34 consensus and $763.2 million in revenue versus $726.0 million expected; revenue increased 18.6% year over year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.63, or $2.52 annualized, yielding about 0.7%. Meanwhile, insiders sold shares, while institutional investors continued to own a substantial 95.02% of outstanding stock.

Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eleven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $371.90.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WTS shares. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $414.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $445.00 price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of WTS opened at $358.86 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $359.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $340.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.15. Watts Water Technologies has a 12-month low of $260.00 and a 12-month high of $394.54.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $763.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $725.99 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 19.16% and a net margin of 14.34%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.09 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,096 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.55, for a total value of $394,066.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,828,579.85. This represents a 12.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Noonan sold 3,650 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.72, for a total value of $1,291,078.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Watts Water Technologies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.5% in the first quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,702 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $784,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.6% during the third quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 729 shares of the technology company's stock worth $258,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 11.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 478 shares of the technology company's stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 1,818 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 706 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $205,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures and sells products that manage the safety, efficiency, quality and flow of water in plumbing, heating and cooling systems. Its products serve residential, commercial, industrial and institutional applications, including new construction, renovation and infrastructure projects.

The company's offerings include backflow prevention and water pressure management equipment, valves, regulators, drainage and plumbing products, water conditioning and filtration systems, water heaters, and solutions for hydronic heating and cooling.

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