Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Sold by Woodline Partners LP

Woodline Partners LP reduced its holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 33.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,228 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 10,887 shares during the quarter. Woodline Partners LP’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $4,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WTS. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,950 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,616,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC increased its position in Watts Water Technologies by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,410 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,541,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $336,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTS has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $219.00 to $229.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Northcoast Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $222.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $925,700.41. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Shashank Patel sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $1,960,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 2,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $674,730. This trade represents a 74.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,165 shares of company stock valued at $3,074,168 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS stock opened at $236.99 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.37 and a 52 week high of $248.17. The company has a market capitalization of $7.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $211.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $210.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.59.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $2.37 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 return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 12.93%. The company’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a boost from Watts Water Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is 23.83%.

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.