Ballentine Partners LLC Sells 43 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Ballentine Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,281 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 43 shares during the quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $846,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 964 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 28.4% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 362 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,649,000. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its stake in Waters by 49.9% during the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 994 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter worth approximately $148,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $408.40 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $379.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $352.73. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $416.24. The firm has a market cap of $24.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.97, a PEG ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. The company 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%. Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.84 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on WAT. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on Waters from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $384.71.

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.