Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Takes Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC has acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc., purchasing 1,231 shares valued at approximately $303,000 in the second quarter.
• The company's recent earnings report revealed a profit of $3.09 earnings per share (EPS), exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue growth of 7.8% year-over-year.
• An announcement of a quarterly dividend of $0.52 was made, representing an annualized yield of 0.7% and a dividend payout ratio of 22.37%.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,231 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WTS. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.4% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 12,854 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,621,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.7% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 3,207 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $653,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 12.3% during the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 58,817 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $11,994,000 after purchasing an additional 6,449 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 3.2% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 4,376 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $892,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of WTS stock opened at $281.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.59. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $177.59 and a 52-week high of $287.89. The company has a market capitalization of $9.40 billion, a PE ratio of 30.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.13. The business's fifty day moving average is $278.49 and its 200 day moving average is $250.58.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.11% and a net margin of 13.63%.The company had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.15 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th were given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.37%.

Insider Activity

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 sale, the director owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $327,693.30. This trade represents a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTS has been the subject of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Barclays initiated coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, September 19th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $287.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $253.80.

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.

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