Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Stock Position Lifted by Algert Global LLC

Key Points

• Algert Global LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. by 7.7% during the first quarter, owning approximately 0.12% of the company, worth around $8.29 million.
• Watts Water Technologies reported earnings of $3.09 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.68, alongside a revenue increase of 7.8% year-over-year.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, set to be paid on September 15th, with an annualized yield of 0.8%.

Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,673 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,900 shares during the quarter. Algert Global LLC owned about 0.12% of Watts Water Technologies worth $8,294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,345 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $680,000 after buying an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 30.2% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 68,748 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $13,976,000 after buying an additional 15,938 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 30,624 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $6,224,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 229,546 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $46,667,000 after buying an additional 14,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 31,504 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $6,405,000 after buying an additional 2,356 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.85, for a total value of $1,692,950.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total value of $195,682.85. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $327,693.30. This represents a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Northcoast Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $245.50.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE WTS traded up $9.39 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $280.59. The company had a trading volume of 168,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 250,945. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $177.59 and a fifty-two week high of $281.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $256.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $230.38. The firm has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.13.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.41. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.11% and a net margin of 13.63%.The firm had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.15 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.37%.

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.