Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC Purchases 3,760 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 2.0% in Q4, adding 3,760 shares to hold 189,909 shares (about $52.42 million), which is roughly 2.2% of Birch Hill’s portfolio and ~0.57% of WTS.
• Institutional investors own about 95.02% of WTS, with several firms (e.g., Invesco +34.4%, UBS +223%) boosting positions recently; analysts’ consensus is a Hold with an average price target of $331.67.
• Company insiders have been net sellers — including the CEO and General Counsel — with 29,674 shares sold (~$9.67 million) over the last 90 days, leaving insiders owning about 1.00% of the stock.

Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 189,909 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,760 shares during the quarter. Watts Water Technologies comprises about 2.2% of Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC owned about 0.57% of Watts Water Technologies worth $52,419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 907,336 shares of the technology company's stock worth $253,211,000 after purchasing an additional 19,247 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 34.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 469,508 shares of the technology company's stock worth $131,124,000 after purchasing an additional 120,090 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 17.5% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 326,139 shares of the technology company's stock worth $90,226,000 after purchasing an additional 48,470 shares during the period. Port Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.0% in the third quarter. Port Capital LLC now owns 251,206 shares of the technology company's stock worth $70,157,000 after purchasing an additional 2,378 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 223.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 202,250 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $56,484,000 after buying an additional 139,637 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on WTS shares. Zacks Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Monday, December 29th. HSBC started coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. KeyCorp raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $288.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $331.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 5,025 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.08, for a total value of $1,613,427.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 12,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,944,146.72. The trade was a 29.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 16,066 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.31, for a total transaction of $5,258,562.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 191,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,582,326.62. The trade was a 7.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 29,674 shares of company stock valued at $9,669,838 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE WTS opened at $303.42 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.83, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.27. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $308.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $290.83. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $191.20 and a twelve month high of $345.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The technology company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $625.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $610.40 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 20.45%.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

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.

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