Norden Group LLC Acquires New Stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Norden Group LLC bought a new stake in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,079 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $641,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 16.3% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 7,144 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. acquired a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter valued at approximately $395,000. Freedom Day Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Watts Water Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $1,502,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Watts Water Technologies by 33.8% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 16,326 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,821,000 after purchasing an additional 4,127 shares during the period. 95.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Watts Water Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of Watts Water Technologies stock opened at $198.56 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50-day moving average of $204.00 and a 200 day moving average of $198.64. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $156.85 and a 12 month high of $219.52.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The technology company reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.19. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.75% and a return on equity of 19.38%. The company had revenue of $547.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $532.58 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. Watts Water Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Watts Water Technologies from $206.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $191.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total value of $307,207.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,994,865.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Elie Melhem sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.50, for a total value of $498,750.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,706,018. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Virginia A. Halloran sold 1,520 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total transaction of $307,207.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,994,865.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,113 shares of company stock valued at $1,023,106. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Watts Water Technologies 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.