Insider Selling: Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Insider Sells 2,257 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: Watts Water Technologies insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares at an average price of $301, totaling about $679,357. After the transaction, he still held 8,963 shares, reducing his ownership by about 20.1%.
• Strong quarterly results: The company recently reported EPS of $3.04, topping analyst expectations of $2.72, while revenue rose 21.4% year over year to $677.3 million.
• Dividend and outlook: Watts announced a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, and analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $329.44.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total transaction of $679,357.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,963 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,697,863. The trade was a 20.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Elie Melhem also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, March 19th, Elie Melhem sold 372 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.13, for a total transaction of $108,672.36.
• On Wednesday, March 18th, Elie Melhem sold 379 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $113,711.37.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 0.2%

WTS opened at $299.39 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $299.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $293.21. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $235.14 and a twelve month high of $345.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.39, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.20.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.32. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 14.32% and a return on equity of 18.92%. The business had revenue of $677.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $638.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.37 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 19.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $379.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $267.00 to $323.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $329.44.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,444,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 180,375 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $50,375,000 after purchasing an additional 27,093 shares during the period. Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,308,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 27,985 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $7,816,000 after purchasing an additional 4,140 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 138,293 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $38,622,000 after purchasing an additional 13,642 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company's product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.

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