Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Acquired by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 0.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,816 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp owned 0.06% of Watts Water Technologies worth $3,898,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,050,215 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $375,948,000 after acquiring an additional 29,473 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% in the second quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 715,674 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $131,233,000 after purchasing an additional 15,462 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 587,538 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $107,738,000 after purchasing an additional 6,742 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 60.3% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 520,189 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $107,778,000 after buying an additional 195,778 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 338,378 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $71,924,000 after buying an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WTS opened at $215.17 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The business’s 50 day moving average is $204.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $197.81. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $175.37 and a 52-week high of $219.52.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $541.83 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.04 EPS. Analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Northcoast Research raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $200.25.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 3,429 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.65, for a total value of $667,454.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 14,064 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,737,557.60. The trade was a 19.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Monica Barry sold 1,559 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.52, for a total transaction of $331,318.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,430 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,463.60. This trade represents a 26.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 32,974 shares of company stock worth $6,924,594. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.