JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trims Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. $WTS

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 228,177 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 17,564 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $63,725,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WTS. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.4% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 2,648 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $740,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Texas Yale Capital Corp. grew its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 940 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 6,457 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,588,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its holdings in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Profund Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $317,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.70, for a total transaction of $100,164.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $667,360.40. The trade was a 13.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 16,066 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.31, for a total transaction of $5,258,562.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 191,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,582,326.62. This trade represents a 7.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,674 shares of company stock worth $9,669,838. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 0.9%

WTS stock opened at $293.92 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market cap of $9.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.90, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $309.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $288.34. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $177.59 and a 52 week high of $345.17.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The technology company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.26. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 13.98%.The firm had revenue of $625.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $610.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WTS shares. Zacks Research cut Watts Water Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $339.00 target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $288.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $267.00 to $323.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $320.00 to $389.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $334.11.

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.