Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Stock Position Increased by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,098,668 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 19,456 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.95% of Waters worth $2,633,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Waters by 235.7% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Waters by 129.3% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Waters by 54.3% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $368.21 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $389.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $372.13. Waters Co. has a 52 week low of $279.24 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The stock has a market cap of $21.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.38, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. On average, research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised shares of Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.07.

Waters Company Profile

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.