Retirement Systems of Alabama Acquires 40,912 Shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 122.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 74,194 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,912 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $15,084,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Andina Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $342,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 2.5% in the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,496 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,238 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,085,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 3.4% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,272 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $471,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $202.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 target price on the stock. 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, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.50.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 1.0 %

WTS opened at $205.14 on Friday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $175.37 and a fifty-two week high of $222.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The company’s 50-day moving average is $208.26 and its 200 day moving average is $202.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.60, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.93.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.62%.

Watts Water Technologies Company Profile

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.