Champlain Investment Partners LLC Lowers Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Champlain Investment Partners LLC reduced its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. by 2.2% during the first quarter, holding 412,563 shares valued at approximately $84.13 million.
• Watts Water Technologies' recent earnings report showed an EPS of $3.09, surpassing expectations, with revenues of $643.70 million reflecting a year-over-year increase of 7.8%.
• Analysts have set a new consensus target price of $245.50 for Watts Water Technologies, with various research firms issuing ratings ranging from hold to strong-buy.

Champlain Investment Partners LLC cut its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 412,563 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 9,463 shares during the quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 1.24% of Watts Water Technologies worth $84,130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 4,172 shares of the technology company's stock worth $851,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 57.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 225 shares of the technology company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 3,207 shares of the technology company's stock worth $653,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 6,595 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,345,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Northcoast Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $245.50.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total transaction of $195,682.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $327,693.30. The trade was a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 2.2%

NYSE:WTS traded down $6.21 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $276.49. 307,137 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 239,462. The business's 50-day moving average price is $260.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.13. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $177.59 and a 1 year high of $285.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $643.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $612.15 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.11% and a net margin of 13.63%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 22.37%.

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.