Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) has been downgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating, indicating a shift in analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts like Weiss Ratings and Stifel Nicolaus maintain a "buy" rating, with Stifel raising the price target to $300.00.
• Watts Water Technologies reported a strong quarterly performance with earnings per share of $3.09, surpassing expectations and reflecting a 7.8% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on WTS. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b+)" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, September 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $287.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $253.80.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock traded up $1.11 on Monday, reaching $282.72. The stock had a trading volume of 43,829 shares, compared to its average volume of 191,025. The business's 50 day moving average is $278.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $250.36. The company has a market cap of $9.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Watts Water Technologies has a 1 year low of $177.59 and a 1 year high of $287.89.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.41. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 13.63% and a return on equity of 18.11%. The business had revenue of $643.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.15 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.46 earnings per share. Watts Water Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Joseph T. Noonan sold 713 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.45, for a total value of $195,682.85. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $327,693.30. The trade was a 37.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTS. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 156.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 131 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 258 shares of the technology company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter worth about $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company's stock.

About Watts Water Technologies

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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