Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Sets New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Watts Water Technologies reached a new 52-week high of $265.40 during mid-day trading, with a trading volume of 4,847 shares.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Watts Water Technologies, with Northcoast Research downgrading the stock to "neutral" while Stifel Nicolaus set a new target price of $290.00.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.37, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12, despite a slight year-over-year revenue decline of 2.3%.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $264.30 and last traded at $265.40, with a volume of 4847 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $261.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $234.20.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 1.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $249.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $225.15. The company has a market cap of $8.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.83, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 1.13.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $612.15 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.07% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 23.83%.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $1,960,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $674,730. This represents a 74.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Monica Barry sold 768 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.40, for a total value of $188,467.20. Following the transaction, the insider 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,768 shares of company stock valued at $3,841,417. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,463,375 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $500,804,000 after purchasing an additional 386,333 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 43.3% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 905,783 shares of the technology company's stock worth $184,708,000 after purchasing an additional 273,628 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter worth about $49,199,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth about $50,400,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 85.1% in the 4th quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 422,026 shares of the technology company's stock worth $85,798,000 after purchasing an additional 194,033 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.