Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Price Target Cut to $199.00 by Analysts at Robert W. Baird

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) had its target price lowered by Robert W. Baird from $225.00 to $199.00 in a research note released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the technology company’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of WTS traded down $2.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $182.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 247,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,014. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Watts Water Technologies has a 1-year low of $167.87 and a 1-year high of $219.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $190.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $199.86.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The technology company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.13. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 12.53%. The business had revenue of $597.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $589.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies will post 8.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 2,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.39, for a total value of $470,371.66. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $601,578.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,051 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.51, for a total transaction of $442,011.01. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,850,335.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 2,194 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.39, for a total transaction of $470,371.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $601,578.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,753 shares of company stock valued at $1,236,753 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Perpetual Ltd boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 46,721 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $9,931,000 after acquiring an additional 4,068 shares during the period. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,366,000. Norden Group LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1,826.3% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 59,310 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,606,000 after buying an additional 56,231 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $125,904,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1,968.3% during the first quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 4,509 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $958,000 after acquiring an additional 4,291 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.