Eisler Capital Management Ltd. Takes Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Eisler Capital Management Ltd. acquired 1,200 shares of Watts Water Technologies, valued at approximately $250,000, highlighting increased institutional interest in the company during the 1st quarter.
• Watts Water Technologies reported a Q2 EPS of $3.09, exceeding analyst estimates, and posted a 7.8% year-over-year revenue growth of $643.70 million.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, with a payout ratio of 22.37%, set to be paid on September 15th.

Eisler Capital Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,200 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $250,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WTS. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,713 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,916,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 67,012 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $13,624,000 after purchasing an additional 5,044 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 398,341 shares of the technology company's stock worth $80,983,000 after purchasing an additional 40,738 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $1,030,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on WTS. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Northcoast Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $245.50.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.1%

WTS stock traded up $0.17 on Tuesday, hitting $277.07. 67,319 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 200,452. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.11. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.59 and a twelve month high of $285.90. The business's fifty day moving average is $261.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.45.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.11% and a net margin of 13.63%.The business had revenue of $643.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.46 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 $327,693.30. The trade was a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Company 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.