Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Sold by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,356 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 906 shares during the period. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned approximately 0.11% of Watts Water Technologies worth $7,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WTS. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 660.3% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $231,000. 95.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.00.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $209.73 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $175.37 and a twelve month high of $232.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $211.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $207.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.99 billion, a PE ratio of 24.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 0.82%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.79%.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.