Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 24,525 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 24.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,370 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 24,525 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Watts Water Technologies worth $15,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WTS traded down $3.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $203.72. The company had a trading volume of 104,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,761. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.37 and a 52 week high of $222.70. The business's 50-day moving average is $208.53 and its 200 day moving average is $199.21. The company has a market cap of $6.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.43, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.55.

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

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is 20.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total value of $4,415,882.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 176,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,356,749. This represents a 10.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 2,607 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.72, for a total value of $554,561.04. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 11,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,437,133.04. This trade represents a 18.54 % 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 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $202.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $220.50.

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.