Congress Asset Management Co. Sells 4,070 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Congress Asset Management Co. reduced its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. by 79.0%, selling 4,070 shares and retaining only 1,082 shares valued at $266,000.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in Watts Water Technologies, with Costello Asset Management and GAMMA Investing LLC making significant new investments in the first quarter.
• Watts Water Technologies recently reported strong quarterly earnings, with $3.09 earnings per share surpassing estimates, along with a 7.8% increase in year-over-year revenue.

Congress Asset Management Co. decreased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 79.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,082 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 4,070 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 57.3% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 225 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the first quarter worth $64,000. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WTS has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays began coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, September 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $287.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $253.80.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of WTS opened at $278.71 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.11. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $177.59 and a 12-month high of $287.89. 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 fifty day moving average price of $272.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $242.09.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $643.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.15 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.63% and a return on equity of 18.11%. The firm'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 firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 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.

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