Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Shares Sold by Erste Asset Management GmbH

Key Points

• Erste Asset Management GmbH reduced its position in Watts Water Technologies by 1.9%, holding 48,999 shares valued at approximately $10 million as of the latest report.
• Institutional ownership for Watts Water Technologies is high at 95.02%, with several firms increasing their stakes, including Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management, which raised its position by 18.6%.
• Watts Water Technologies reported earnings of $3.09 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates and reflecting a 7.8% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Erste Asset Management GmbH decreased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,999 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 963 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned 0.15% of Watts Water Technologies worth $9,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $327,693.30. This represents a 37.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.85, for a total value of $1,692,950.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of WTS stock traded up $9.39 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $280.59. 168,163 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 250,945. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $256.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $230.55. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $177.59 and a fifty-two week high of $281.60.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $643.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.15 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.11% and a net margin of 13.63%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Northcoast Research downgraded Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued 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 assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $245.50.

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.