Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Shares Sold by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,056 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 454 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Waters worth $13,637,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Waters by 310.2% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,635 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,596,000 after purchasing an additional 3,505 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Waters by 16.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 758 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Waters by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $617,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in Waters by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its stake in Waters by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 3,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $885,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Cfra set a $389.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped 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, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $365.85.

Waters Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $387.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.02. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $395.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.93, a PEG ratio of 7.08 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $360.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $333.41.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $740.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $712.99 million. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.84 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

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.