KBC Group NV Sells 6,456 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• KBC Group NV reduced its Watts Water Technologies stake by 2.9% in the first quarter, selling 6,456 shares and leaving it with 214,812 shares valued at about $62.4 million.
• Watts Water Technologies reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.04 versus the $2.72 estimate and revenue of $677.3 million, up 21.4% year over year.
• Analysts remain split on the stock: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $345.30, even as several firms recently raised their targets.

KBC Group NV trimmed its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 214,812 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 6,456 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV owned about 0.64% of Watts Water Technologies worth $62,358,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cumberland Partners Ltd increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 13,000 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,588,000 after purchasing an additional 6,500 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $2,848,000. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,950,000. AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 23.8% in the fourth quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 171,194 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $47,253,000 after buying an additional 32,901 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 122.5% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 54,381 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $15,010,000 after acquiring an additional 29,942 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WTS. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $360.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $358.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $345.30.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $341.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $332.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $312.98. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $246.55 and a 12 month high of $394.54. The company has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a PE ratio of 31.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $677.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $638.13 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The firm's revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.37 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.03 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total value of $679,357.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,697,863. This represents a 20.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total value of $123,232.74. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $561,668.82. This represents a 17.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

About Watts Water Technologies

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company's product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.