United Services Automobile Association Takes $369,000 Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association has made a new investment of $369,000 in Watts Water Technologies, purchasing 1,810 shares in the first quarter.
• Watts Water Technologies reported a quarterly earnings per share of $3.09, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.68, along with a 7.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, with the dividend yield standing at 0.7% and the payout ratio at 22.37%.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,810 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $369,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 57.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 225 shares of the technology company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter worth about $64,000. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 1.2%

Watts Water Technologies stock traded up $3.27 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $284.54. 11,578 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 196,527. 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 fifty-two week low of $177.59 and a fifty-two week high of $285.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.60, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.11. The firm's 50 day moving average is $267.66 and its 200-day moving average is $238.26.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. The company's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total transaction of $195,682.85. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $327,693.30. This represents a 37.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $245.50.

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.