Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Acquired by Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 18.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,463,375 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 386,333 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC owned 7.39% of Watts Water Technologies worth $500,804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 329.1% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 236 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 366 shares of the technology company's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 660.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the technology company's stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the technology company's stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of WTS stock traded down $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $241.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 66,370 shares, compared to its average volume of 175,344. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $175.37 and a fifty-two week high of $248.17. The company has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.80, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $213.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $211.60.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $558.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $547.58 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 12.93%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This is a positive change from Watts Water Technologies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is 23.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total value of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $1,960,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,754 shares of the company's stock, valued at $674,730. This trade represents a 74.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,165 shares of company stock worth $3,074,168 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WTS. Northcoast Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $229.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $222.00.

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.