Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management reduced its Watts Water Technologies stake by 1.7%, selling 8,495 shares; it retained 481,110 shares, worth about $170.4 million at quarter-end. Institutional investors collectively own 95.02% of the company.
• Watts reported quarterly EPS of $3.40, beating estimates of $3.14, while revenue of $728 million exceeded forecasts and rose 19% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with a $369.80 average target price. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, a 0.7% annualized yield.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 481,110 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 8,495 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 1.44% of Watts Water Technologies worth $170,406,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 18.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 30,668 shares of the technology company's stock worth $12,005,000 after purchasing an additional 4,832 shares during the period. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,576,000. Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 26.6% during the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 34,579 shares of the technology company's stock worth $10,038,000 after buying an additional 7,256 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the second quarter worth $3,496,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 79.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 218,832 shares of the technology company's stock worth $63,525,000 after buying an additional 97,115 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,096 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.55, for a total transaction of $394,066.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,828,579.85. This represents a 12.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 3,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.72, for a total transaction of $1,291,078.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $374.00 price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $405.00 price objective on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $425.00 to $424.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $369.80.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS stock opened at $346.79 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $11.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.13. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $262.64 and a 52 week high of $394.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $355.42 and a 200-day moving average of $332.55.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The technology company reported $3.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.26. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 19.75%. The company had revenue of $728.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $692.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. Watts Water Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.89%.

Watts Water Technologies Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc designs and manufactures products that help control the safety, flow, and quality of water in plumbing, heating, and water-treatment systems. Its products serve residential, commercial, and industrial applications.

The company's offerings include backflow preventers, valves, water pressure regulators, drainage products, water-quality and treatment systems, and controls for heating and hot-water applications. It also provides solutions for water reuse and other water-management needs.

Founded in 1874 by Joseph Watts, the company traces its origins to the development of a water pressure regulator.

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