Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS Stake Increased by SummitTX Capital L.P.

SummitTX Capital L.P. boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 108.6% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 15,545 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 8,093 shares during the period. SummitTX Capital L.P.’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $4,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTS. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 79.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 218,832 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $63,525,000 after purchasing an additional 97,115 shares during the last quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management USA Corp bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies in the first quarter valued at about $275,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 58.7% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 135,140 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $39,230,000 after buying an additional 49,960 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter valued at approximately $6,874,000. Finally, Inceptionr LLC raised its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 6.8% during the first quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $439,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WTS shares. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $360.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Barclays upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $317.00 to $414.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $379.00 to $403.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Watts Water Technologies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $345.30.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

WTS opened at $346.17 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.14. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $250.82 and a 1-year high of $394.54. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $336.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $315.24.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $677.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $638.13 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 14.32%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. Research analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Watts Water Technologies Profile

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.