Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired 21,136 shares of Watts Water Technologies, valued at approximately $4.31 million, increasing its ownership to about 0.06% of the company.
• Watts Water Technologies declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, reflecting a 0.7% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 22.37%.
• Analyst ratings for Watts Water Technologies show a consensus of "Hold", with price targets ranging from $245.50 to $300.00 after recent upgrades and downgrades.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 21,136 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $4,310,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned 0.06% of Watts Water Technologies at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,470,140 shares of the technology company's stock worth $503,711,000 after purchasing an additional 6,765 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 43.3% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 905,783 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $184,708,000 after acquiring an additional 273,628 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 324,669 shares of the technology company's stock worth $66,207,000 after buying an additional 1,662 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 321,343 shares of the technology company's stock worth $65,528,000 after purchasing an additional 1,640 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 6.6% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 299,956 shares of the technology company's stock worth $61,167,000 after acquiring an additional 18,516 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on WTS shares. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated 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 given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $245.50.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:WTS traded up $2.41 on Wednesday, reaching $278.54. 29,010 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 198,492. The company's 50 day moving average is $264.86 and its 200-day moving average is $235.91. 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.11.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $612.15 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.63% and a return on equity of 18.11%. Watts Water Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $327,693.30. This represents a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.