Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) Shares Acquired by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69,614 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 5,773 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Watts Water Technologies worth $12,765,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 32.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 36,660 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $7,638,000 after purchasing an additional 8,942 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,160 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $658,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 50,655 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $10,553,000 after buying an additional 11,004 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC boosted its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 350.7% during the fourth quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 6,639 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,383,000 after buying an additional 5,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carmignac Gestion grew its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 13,261 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,763,000 after acquiring an additional 1,752 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of WTS opened at $206.03 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $167.87 and a 1-year high of $219.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $195.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $197.74.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The technology company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.13. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The business had revenue of $597.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $589.55 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.34%.

Insider Activity

In other Watts Water Technologies news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total transaction of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $512,237.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Michael J. Dubose sold 315 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.93, for a total value of $58,567.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $512,237.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Elie Melhem sold 1,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.16, for a total transaction of $316,623.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,132,302.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $217.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $225.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th.

Watts Water Technologies 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.