Groupama Asset Managment Boosts Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

Groupama Asset Managment lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 14.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 76,674 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,934 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $21,164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 907,336 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $253,211,000 after acquiring an additional 19,247 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 832,148 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $229,721,000 after purchasing an additional 25,501 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 522,624 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $144,261,000 after purchasing an additional 1,418 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 469,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $131,124,000 after purchasing an additional 120,090 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $100,627,000. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WTS. Wall Street Zen lowered Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $379.00 price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $323.00 to $317.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $329.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Watts Water Technologies news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,257 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total value of $679,357.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,697,863. This represents a 20.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 398 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.63, for a total value of $123,232.74. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,814 shares in the company, valued at $561,668.82. The trade was a 17.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS stock opened at $344.78 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $307.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $300.71. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $238.58 and a fifty-two week high of $348.09. The firm has a market cap of $11.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.54, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 1.62.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.32. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The company had revenue of $677.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.13 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

About Watts Water Technologies

Watts Water Technologies, Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of flow control products and solutions designed to ensure the safe, efficient delivery and use of water. Founded in 1874 and headquartered in North Andover, Massachusetts, the company has built a reputation for engineering innovation in residential, commercial and industrial plumbing, heating, cooling and water treatment systems. Watts operates through a comprehensive portfolio of brands and product lines that address application-specific requirements in water safety, pressure regulation, flow control and filtration.

The company’s product offerings span backflow preventers, pressure reducing valves, relief valves and steam traps, as well as hydronic balancing and temperature control devices for heating systems.