Franklin Resources Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 36.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,003 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 9,023 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $3,308,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTS. Andina Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.3% during the third quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the technology company's stock worth $342,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,496 shares of the technology company's stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,238 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,085,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,272 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.8% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,043 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $202.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "hold" rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $220.50.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Watts Water Technologies stock traded up $2.06 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $206.87. 69,124 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 147,937. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $208.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $198.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a PE ratio of 24.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.92. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $175.37 and a fifty-two week high of $222.70.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The business had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $541.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.04 EPS. The business's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.62%.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 2,607 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.72, for a total value of $554,561.04. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 11,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,437,133.04. The trade was a 18.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total transaction of $4,415,882.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 176,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,356,749. This represents a 10.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,974 shares of company stock valued at $6,924,594 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.