Stifel Nicolaus Issues Positive Forecast for Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) Stock Price

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $218.00 to $219.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the technology company’s stock.

WTS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Watts Water Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Watts Water Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.00.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Down 1.7 %

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $220.91 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $208.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $203.29. Watts Water Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $175.37 and a fifty-two week high of $232.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.49, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The technology company reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.14. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 18.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies will post 8.73 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. Watts Water Technologies’s payout ratio is 20.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Watts Water Technologies

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 977,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $202,425,000 after buying an additional 8,314 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 741,743 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $153,708,000 after acquiring an additional 30,688 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 632,155 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $128,527,000 after acquiring an additional 44,465 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 60.3% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 520,189 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $107,778,000 after acquiring an additional 195,778 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Watts Water Technologies by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 323,007 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $65,667,000 after acquiring an additional 19,598 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.