Boston Trust Walden Corp Lowers Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp reduced its position in Watts Water Technologies by 8.4% in Q4, selling 39,897 shares and ending the period with 437,716 shares (about 1.31% of the company) valued at roughly $120.8M, its 16th-largest holding.
• Other institutions boosted stakes—Invesco up 34.4% and UBS up 223%—and hedge funds/institutional investors now own about 95.02% of WTS stock.
• Analysts carry a consensus rating of Hold with a $331.67 target; the company recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates and pays a monthly dividend of $0.52 (≈2.1% yield).

Boston Trust Walden Corp decreased its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 437,716 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 39,897 shares during the period. Watts Water Technologies accounts for about 0.9% of Boston Trust Walden Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned approximately 1.31% of Watts Water Technologies worth $120,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 19,247 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 120,090 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 48,470 shares in the last quarter. Port Capital LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 2,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 223.0% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 202,250 shares of the technology company's stock worth $56,484,000 after buying an additional 139,637 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $389.00 to $367.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $331.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 379 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $113,711.37. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,477,947.76. This represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 5,025 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.08, for a total value of $1,613,427.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 12,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,146.72. The trade was a 29.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,674 shares of company stock valued at $9,669,838. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS stock opened at $296.64 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $307.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $291.10. The company has a market cap of $9.89 billion, a PE ratio of 29.17, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $195.68 and a 12-month high of $345.17.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The technology company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $625.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $610.40 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 13.98%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 11.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend 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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