Geode Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Geode Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 643,444 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 98,299 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $130,841,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Watts Water Technologies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 267,439 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $55,411,000 after purchasing an additional 12,159 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 319,703 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $64,996,000 after acquiring an additional 3,296 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $202,425,000 after acquiring an additional 8,314 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 35.2% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 23,507 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,779,000 after acquiring an additional 6,125 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 264.1% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,080 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. 95.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WTS shares. 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 note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Watts Water Technologies

In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total value of $925,700.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,204,038.57. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $179.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $208.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $207.74. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $175.37 and a twelve month high of $232.60.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 12.93%. Equities analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.79%.

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.