Stifel Nicolaus Boosts Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Price Target to $218.00

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) had its target price boosted by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $202.00 to $218.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the technology company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price would indicate a potential downside of 1.36% from the company’s current price.

WTS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Northcoast Research upgraded Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com raised Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

NYSE WTS traded up $1.16 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $221.00. The company had a trading volume of 28,463 shares, compared to its average volume of 144,193. Watts Water Technologies has a twelve month low of $175.37 and a twelve month high of $222.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $207.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.92.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $543.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $541.83 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 12.37%. Watts Water Technologies’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.04 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Watts Water Technologies

In other Watts Water Technologies news, General Counsel Kenneth Robert Lepage sold 2,607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.72, for a total value of $554,561.04. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 11,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,437,133.04. This trade represents a 18.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert J. Pagano, Jr. sold 20,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.20, for a total value of $4,415,882.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 176,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,356,749. This represents a 10.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 32,974 shares of company stock valued at $6,924,594. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.5% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,050,215 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $375,948,000 after acquiring an additional 29,473 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $202,425,000 after acquiring an additional 8,314 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 4.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 741,743 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $153,708,000 after acquiring an additional 30,688 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 2.2% in the second quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 715,674 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $131,233,000 after acquiring an additional 15,462 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 587,538 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $107,738,000 after acquiring an additional 6,742 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.