Watts Water and Columbia Sportswear have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – October 3, 2025 – Zacks Equity Research shares Watts Water Technologies, Inc. WTS as the Bull of the Day and Columbia Sportswear Company COLM as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Antero Resources AR, Williams WMB and Kinder Morgan Inc KMI.

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks.

Bull of the Day:

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. runs an essential but boring business across plumbing, heating, sustainability, and quality. Yet, its returns and earnings growth are far from ordinary.

Watts Water stock has skyrocketed 2,400% in the past 25 years to blow away the S&P 500’s 420%, including a 170% run over the past five years, topping the benchmark’s 100% and the Zacks Tech sector’s 130%.

Its recent upward earnings revisions activity earn WTS a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and it’s topped our quarterly estimates for five years running.

Water is one of the most precious resources on the planet. Watts Water’s innovations across the space make it a behind-the-scenes economic pillar.

The non-flashy, dividend-paying company’s offerings will remain critical no matter what the economy looks like 10 or 20 years from now. Investors looking for stability and proven growth should consider Watts Water.

On top of all that, Watts Water is benefiting from the broader reshoring and infrastructure spending boom. WTS is also a somewhat under-the-radar artificial intelligence play since AI data centers use enormous amounts of water for cooling servers.

Buy Top-Ranked WTS Stock and Hold Forever

Watts Water is a leading manufacturer of plumbing, heating, and water quality products and solutions that help manage and conserve water and energy in homes, offices, and beyond.

Digging a bit deeper, its plumbing and flow-control products help facilitate efficient water transportation and control for commercial, residential, and industrial applications. Watts Water offers an array of drainage solutions and irrigation systems, as well as radiant heating and cooling offerings, fire protection, and beyond.

Watts Water operates a growing water quality and filtration segment, as well as innovative rainwater harvesting solutions. Its commercial rainwater harvesting systems are designed to capture, store, treat, and deliver non-potable water for a variety of end uses, including irrigation, restrooms, and more.

WTS: Outlook and Growing Connection to AI Data Centers

Water is one of the most vital resources on the planet. Watts Water’s business revolves around making sure water usage is optimized at every turn. Watts Water is launching more connected smart products that are gaining traction as it benefits from the growing efficiency push across residential and commercial construction.

The company is riding multiple key long-term trends, from reshoring to broader infrastructure spending.

Watts Water is also gaining traction in the AI arms race because of the massive amounts of water needed to help cool and operate AI data centers. AI’s demand for water globally in 2027 could account for half of the total annual amount withdrawn for use in the U.K., according to the Wall Street Journal.

WTS notes that its next-gen water management technologies help “protect against water-based hardware damage" at data centers, reduce an AI facility’s water consumption, and decrease operational costs.

The water company posted a beat-and-raise Q2 report in early August. Watts Water is projected to grow its revenue by 4% in 2025 and 2026 to reach $2.44 billion, adding roughly $1 billion to its top-line since 2020.

It is projected to grow its adjusted earnings per share (EPS) by 11% in 2025 and 8% next year after more than doubling its EPS between 2020 and 2024.

Watts Water has beaten our bottom-line estimates for five years in a row, and its earnings revisions have surged recently after a stretch of sideways movement in 2024.

Its most accurate EPS estimates also came in above consensus. Watts Water's overall EPS revisions earn it a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Watts Water’s Performance, Valuation, and Other Reasons to Buy

WTS is benefiting from aggressive cost reduction actions along with a strong balance sheet. It’s focused on enhancing organic growth, driving margin expansion, and reinvesting in productivity initiatives.

The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.52 a share, up from $0.43 in FY24 and $0.23 per share in FY20.

Watts Water stock climbed 170% in the past five years vs. Tech’s 130% and the S&P 500’s 100%. This run includes a 37% charge in 2025 that has it trading right near its all-time highs alongside the broader market.

As we touched on up top, WTS stock has climbed 2,400% in the past 25 years to blow away the S&P 500’s 420%. Better yet, its total return, which factors in the reinvestment of dividends and any other distributions to purchase more shares, soars to 3,250%.

Despite trading right near its all-time highs in terms of price, Watts Water trades at a 20% discount to its peaks at 26.7X forward 12-month earnings.

The stock broke out meaningfully above its 2021 highs in May after meeting resistance there for most of 2024. Watts Water is attempting to hold its ground at its 21-day moving average, and it trades at neutral RSI levels.

Some investors might want to wait for WTS to cool off a bit before they buy. But the same could be said for the entire market, and the market-timing game is a risky one to play for long-term investors.

Bear of the Day:

Outdoor-focused clothing company Columbia Sportswear Company’s earnings have tanked over the last several years after a huge Covid-period surge.

Columbia is struggling against multiple headwinds from slowing consumer spending, made worse by lingering inflation, to tariffs and tougher competition.

Stay Away from COLM Stock for Now?

Columbia has been at the forefront of outdoor clothing, apparel, and footwear for decades. The Portland, Oregon-headquartered firm owns multiple outdoor-focused brands, including its namesake, as well as boot standout Sorel and higher-end apparel maker Mountain Hard Wear.

The company also owns prAna, which makes everything from rock climbing clothes to yoga gear, and is part of a group of brands competing alongside Lululemon.

The diversification and portfolio expansion have helped Columbia. Still, its namesake brand is by far the largest revenue contributor, bringing in around 80% to 85% of total sales in most quarters.

Columbia competes against The North Face, Patagonia, and tons of digital-native upstarts that are thriving in the direct-to-consumer age.

Columbia posted huge revenue growth in 2021 and 2022. But it hasn’t been able to sustain its momentum as it faces inflation, slowing overall consumer spending, and other setbacks.

The historic outdoor clothing company announced a multi-year profit improvement program in 2024 after its earnings tanked in 2023. COLM’s adjusted and GAAP earnings per share fell again in 2024 despite efforts to grow its bottom line.

Columbia’s situation hasn't improve in 2025. It reported an operating loss of $23.6 million in Q2 and an adjusted loss of -$0.19 a share. “The apparel and footwear industry is facing increasing tariffs, on top of already high existing duties… For the upcoming Fall 2025 season, our focus is delivering exceptional value to consumers, who are pressured by higher prices for many consumer goods,” CEO Tim Boyle said in prepared Q2 remarks.

Columbia’s earnings outlook fell again after its Q2 release, with its estimate for 2026 down 11% over the past two months. Its recent downward earnings revisions, which land it a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), are part of a huge negative revisions spiral that began in 2022.

COLM stock is down 8% over the last 10 years compared to the S&P 500’s 250% run. This poor performance includes a 36% drop in 2025 as Wall Street pivots away from the entire apparel industry amid all of the headwinds.

Investors who are bullish on a possible Columbia turnaround might want to wait until at least its next earnings report before they consider buying the stock.

Additional content:

AI Data Center Boom Lifts Gas Demand: Will WMB, AR, KMI Gain?

The world is gradually witnessing a widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across all businesses, which is driving a significant increase in demand for data centers. These data centers house sophisticated servers and supporting infrastructures required by AI to process data and train models. To support this immense computing power and intense workload, data centers are in increasing need of more electricity, which, in turn, is raising the demand for natural gas.

This is because the electricity generated from natural-gas-fired plants is cleaner. With the rising demand for natural gas, the outlook becomes bright for companies involved in exploring and producing and transporting the commodity from the shale plays to the end market. Three energy players that are well-poised to grow are Antero Resources, Williams and Kinder Morgan Inc.

3 Energy Stocks: AR, WMB, KMI

Antero Resources is a leading explorer and producer of natural gas in the United States.In the Appalachian Basin, among the prolific plays, the company has a strong footprint, brightening the production outlook. Thus, being a prominent producer in the United States, AR is well-positioned to capitalize on the data center-led mounting energy demand.

Williams is a midstream energy giant with a huge pipeline network, involved in transporting roughly 33% of the natural gas produced in the domestic market. Thus, the outlook for WMB also remains bright.

Like WMB, Kinder Morgan is also a midstream energy major. Employing its huge pipeline network, KMI is responsible for carrying roughly 40% of the natural gas being produced in the domestic market.

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