Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on WTS. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $275.00 price target on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $288.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $280.00.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of WTS opened at $287.51 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $276.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $271.78. Watts Water Technologies has a one year low of $177.59 and a one year high of $290.80. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.67, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 1.84.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The technology company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $611.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $576.20 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.31% and a net margin of 13.79%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 21.47%.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 605 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.78, for a total value of $167,451.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 13,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,712,173.36. The trade was a 4.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Timothy P. Horne sold 6,814 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.32, for a total value of $1,855,588.48. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,084,800. The trade was a 31.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 15,605 shares of company stock valued at $4,296,387 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. World Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 1.4% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 2,648 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. lifted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 940 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 6,457 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,588,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 15.9% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 335 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

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.