Gabelli Funds LLC Trims Stock Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Financial News Live · Feb 26, 2023 01:42

Gabelli Funds LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS – Get Rating) by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 237,475 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Watts Water Technologies were worth $29,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Zacks Investment Management increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 500.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 10,970 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,379,000 after purchasing an additional 9,142 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 48.8% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,554 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,165 shares during the last quarter. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Watts Water Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $300,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 188,746 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $23,729,000 after purchasing an additional 1,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ergoteles LLC increased its position in shares of Watts Water Technologies by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 13,993 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 765 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.85% of the company's stock.

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Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

WTS stock traded down $1.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $173.00. The company had a trading volume of 118,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 142,849. The company has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.03. Watts Water Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.31 and a 12-month high of $181.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $159.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.03.

Watts Water Technologies (NYSE:WTS – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 8th. The technology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $501.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $489.21 million. Watts Water Technologies had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 19.75%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Watts Water Technologies, Inc. will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 1st will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 28th. Watts Water Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 16.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $151.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Watts Water Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 10th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Watts Water Technologies from $144.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 10th. Six 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, Watts Water Technologies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $147.50.

Watts Water Technologies Profile

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Watts Water Technologies, Inc engages in the manufacture and provision of products for water conservation, safety, and flow control. It operates through the following geographic segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa. Its services include plumbing and flow control solutions, water quality and conditioning, water reuse and drainage, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, and municipal waterworks.

Gabelli Funds LLC Trims Stock Position in Watts Water Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:WTS)

Watts Water Technologies Price Performance

Watts Water Technologies Announces Dividend

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Watts Water Technologies Profile

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