Park Place Capital Corp Trims Holdings in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Park Place Capital Corp lowered its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) by 34.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 342 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp’s holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $63,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 174 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 502.7% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 223 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 1st quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $56,000. 95.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WTS. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Watts Water Technologies from $212.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Watts Water Technologies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $201.50.

Insider Transactions at Watts Water Technologies

In related news, CFO Shashank Patel sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.10, for a total value of $324,370.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,345,880.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.51, for a total value of $442,011.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,850,335.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Shashank Patel sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.10, for a total value of $324,370.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,345,880.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,753 shares of company stock valued at $1,236,753 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WTS traded down $3.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $199.44. The company had a trading volume of 171,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 153,502. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $200.24. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $167.87 and a twelve month high of $219.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.90.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The technology company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $570.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.20 million. Watts Water Technologies had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 12.53%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.92 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. This is a boost from Watts Water Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.34%.

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.