Man Group plc Reduces Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Man Group plc trimmed its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 44.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,784 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 5,379 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc's holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $1,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,950 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,616,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the technology company's stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,410 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,541,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the technology company's stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Monica Barry sold 768 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.40, for a total value of $188,467.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,530,314.40. This represents a 10.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was 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 $2,204,038.57. The trade was a 29.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,165 shares of company stock worth $3,074,168 over the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

WTS stock traded up $6.84 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $244.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 148,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 175,568. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $211.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $210.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.37 and a 1 year high of $248.17. The stock has a market cap of $8.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 dividend yield of 0.85%. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 23.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WTS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $219.00 to $229.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Northcoast Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $222.00.

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.