Stifel Nicolaus Issues Positive Forecast for Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Stock Price

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $260.00 to $275.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the technology company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price points to a potential upside of 12.16% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Northcoast Research lowered Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $231.20.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock traded up $4.67 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $245.19. 44,187 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 174,906. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.13. Watts Water Technologies has a twelve month low of $175.37 and a twelve month high of $248.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $225.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.27.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $558.00 million for 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.85, for a total transaction of $1,692,950.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $1,960,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 2,754 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $674,730. This represents a 74.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,768 shares of company stock worth $3,841,417 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 57.3% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 225 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 329.1% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 236 shares of the technology company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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