MetLife Investment Management LLC Purchases 2,356 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,504 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,356 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned 0.09% of Watts Water Technologies worth $6,405,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 229,546 shares of the technology company's stock worth $46,667,000 after purchasing an additional 14,239 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 30,624 shares of the technology company's stock worth $6,224,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 422,026 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $85,798,000 after buying an additional 194,033 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 14,437 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,935,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keeley Teton Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC now owns 5,362 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WTS shares. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $219.00 to $229.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.00.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS opened at $204.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $205.56 and a 200 day moving average of $206.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.37 and a 12 month high of $232.60. The company has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.53, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 12.93%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is 19.79%.

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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