Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 113,348 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,044,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WTS. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 10.4% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 6,374 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 14.3% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 2,961 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $613,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 1.3% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,238 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,085,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 29.5% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,592 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Watts Water Technologies by 4.0% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 42,655 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,838,000 after purchasing an additional 1,631 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.02% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies Trading Up 2.3 %

Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $211.23 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.37 and a 52 week high of $232.60. The company has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $209.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $206.78.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last released its 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on WTS. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target 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. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Watts Water Technologies from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Watts Water Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 4,397 shares of Watts Water Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.53, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.