Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Upgraded by Stifel Nicolaus to Buy Rating

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) was upgraded by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage presently has a $229.00 price objective on the technology company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 15.32% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $222.00.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTS opened at $198.58 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $207.34 and a 200 day moving average of $207.22. 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 cap of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.95. Watts Water Technologies has a 12 month low of $175.37 and a 12 month high of $232.60.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies will post 9.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were 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 owns 10,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,204,038.57. The trade was a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 124.5% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 24,273 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,950,000 after buying an additional 13,460 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 80.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth approximately $343,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Watts Water Technologies by 108.4% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 323 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impact Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,141 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $844,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

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.