Triodos Investment Management BV Decreases Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• Triodos Investment Management BV has decreased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 4.4%, owning approximately 0.26% of the company after selling 4,000 shares.
• Watts Water Technologies reported earnings of $3.09 per share, exceeding analyst expectations by $0.41, with a revenue increase of 7.8% compared to the previous year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, which equates to an annualized dividend of $2.08 and a dividend yield of 0.8%.

Triodos Investment Management BV cut its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 4.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 86,000 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 4,000 shares during the period. Triodos Investment Management BV owned approximately 0.26% of Watts Water Technologies worth $21,147,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WTS. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,470,140 shares of the technology company's stock worth $503,711,000 after acquiring an additional 6,765 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 43.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 905,783 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $184,708,000 after purchasing an additional 273,628 shares during the last quarter. Mirova US LLC raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 748,328 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $184,006,000 after buying an additional 19,344 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 324,669 shares of the technology company's stock worth $66,207,000 after buying an additional 1,662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 321,343 shares of the technology company's stock worth $65,528,000 after buying an additional 1,640 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total transaction 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 2.5%

NYSE:WTS opened at $273.32 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $276.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $246.11. The company has a market capitalization of $9.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.39, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.13. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $177.59 and a 12 month high of $287.89.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.41. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.63% and a return on equity of 18.11%. The business had revenue of $643.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $612.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.46 EPS. The business's quarterly 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 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 29th. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on WTS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price 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. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of 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. Wall Street Zen cut Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.80.

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.

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