Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $15.56 Million Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS - Free Report) by 11.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,075 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 7,984 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.23% of Watts Water Technologies worth $15,555,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WTS. Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter worth about $47,238,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 60.3% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 520,189 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $107,778,000 after purchasing an additional 195,778 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 1,070.6% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 209,000 shares of the technology company's stock worth $38,324,000 after purchasing an additional 191,146 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 171.7% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 139,100 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $25,507,000 after buying an additional 87,900 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $9,794,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company's stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE:WTS traded up $1.13 on Friday, hitting $215.79. 79,184 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 139,309. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $206.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.82. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.37 and a 52 week high of $221.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The company has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $541.83 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 12.37%. Watts Water Technologies's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.04 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Watts Water Technologies's payout ratio is presently 20.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Watts Water Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $200.25.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Monica Barry sold 1,559 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.52, for a total transaction of $331,318.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $941,463.60. The trade was a 26.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 2,607 shares of the firm'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 sale, the general counsel now directly owns 11,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,437,133.04. This represents a 18.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 32,974 shares of company stock valued at $6,924,594. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.