TD Cowen Raises Waters (NYSE:WAT) Price Target to $363.00

Waters (NYSE:WAT) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at TD Cowen from $325.00 to $363.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. TD Cowen’s price target suggests a potential upside of 4.46% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, SVB Leerink upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $310.58.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAT traded up $11.21 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $347.49. The stock had a trading volume of 407,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 449,111. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $303.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $321.18. Waters has a 1-year low of $231.90 and a 1-year high of $367.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.91, a PEG ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.94.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 20.75% and a return on equity of 66.59%. The company had revenue of $709.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $700.09 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.80 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Waters will post 11.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard H. Fearon acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Richard H. Fearon bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $332.90 per share, for a total transaction of $332,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares in the company, valued at $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total transaction of $1,446,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,321,894.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in Waters by 90.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 435 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Waters by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,848 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $608,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in Waters by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 16,897 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,563,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in Waters by 77.4% during the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,422 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $797,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new position in Waters during the 4th quarter worth $237,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

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.