Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Stake Cut by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 8.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 351,926 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 34,463 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 1.06% of Watts Water Technologies worth $71,765,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WTS. Securian Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 5.0% in the first quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,119 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 47.6% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 707 shares of the technology company's stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 7,700 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,570,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 6,595 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,345,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 13,443 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,741,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 1.0%

Watts Water Technologies stock traded down $2.42 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $248.72. The company had a trading volume of 138,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 175,695. The firm has a market cap of $8.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.46. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $177.59 and a 1 year high of $260.93. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $245.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $220.55.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $558.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.58 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.07% and a return on equity of 17.59%. Watts Water Technologies's revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This is a boost from Watts Water Technologies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on WTS shares. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $234.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Monica Barry sold 768 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.40, for a total transaction of $188,467.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 6,236 shares in the company, valued at $1,530,314.40. This trade represents a 10.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.85, for a total transaction of $1,692,950.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,768 shares of company stock worth $3,841,417. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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.