Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Lowers Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 31.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,730 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 2,172 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $962,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WTS. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 157.4% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 25,006 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $5,181,000 after acquiring an additional 15,290 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 89.9% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 61,968 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $12,839,000 after purchasing an additional 29,332 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter valued at approximately $246,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 13.7% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,649 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $342,000 after buying an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Port Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Port Capital LLC now owns 228,918 shares of the technology company's stock worth $47,430,000 after buying an additional 14,025 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total value of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on WTS. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of 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 boosted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $220.00.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WTS traded down $7.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $187.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 239,148 shares, compared to its average volume of 163,106. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $210.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $208.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $175.37 and a 1-year high of $232.60.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.79%.

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.