Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Shares Sold by Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators reduced its stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 297 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 34 shares during the quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in Waters were worth $107,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Linscomb Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.4% during the second quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 7,841 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,275,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,084 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its position in Waters by 3.0% during the second quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 1,170 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in Waters by 0.3% in the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 13,087 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,797,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 1.4% in the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,782 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,001,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $388.09 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $344.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $327.15. The company has a market cap of $23.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.50 and a beta of 0.97. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $246.35 and a 12-month high of $393.38.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. The firm had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $712.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.84 earnings per share. Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.67 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $365.85.

Waters 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.