Hsbc Holdings PLC Has $11.66 Million Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC sold 2,129 shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc., reducing its stake by 3.6% to 57,179 shares, valued at approximately $11.66 million.
• Watts Water Technologies reported strong quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $3.09, surpassing analysts' expectations, and a revenue increase of 7.8% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, set to be paid to investors of record on August 29th, reflecting a 0.7% yield.

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 3.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 57,179 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 2,129 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.17% of Watts Water Technologies worth $11,659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted 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 worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted 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 worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% during 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 position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth about $64,000. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target 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. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $245.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total value of $195,682.85. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $327,693.30. This trade represents a 37.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 2.2%

Watts Water Technologies stock traded down $6.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $275.90. The stock had a trading volume of 150,686 shares, compared to its average volume of 200,333. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $259.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $232.49. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $177.59 and a twelve month high of $285.90. 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 firm has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.67, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.13.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.46 EPS. Equities 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. 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 (DPR) 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.