New York State Teachers Retirement System Has $7.01 Million Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 34,476 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 4,700 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.10% of Watts Water Technologies worth $7,009,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 155 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the third quarter worth about $68,000. CWM LLC grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 24.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 392 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 99.3% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 544 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Watts Water Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $205,000. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:WTS opened at $218.45 on Thursday. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.37 and a 1 year high of $232.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $208.20 and a 200-day moving average of $203.75. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.93.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.08%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Northcoast Research raised 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. 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.00.

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.