Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $249.51 and last traded at $249.11, with a volume of 25260 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $247.22.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Northcoast Research cut shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Four equities 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 stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $231.20.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.2%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $232.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $215.74. The firm has a market cap of $8.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.25. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 17.59% and a net margin of 13.07%. The company had revenue of $558.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $547.58 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. Watts Water Technologies's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Monica Barry sold 768 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.40, for a total transaction of $188,467.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,236 shares in the company, valued at $1,530,314.40. The trade was a 10.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of Watts Water Technologies 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,754 shares in the company, valued at $674,730. The trade was a 74.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,768 shares of company stock worth $3,841,417. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WTS. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the first quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake 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 valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 329.1% in the 4th 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 lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% during the 1st 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 period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% 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.