Waters (NYSE:WAT) Upgraded to “Sector Outperform” at Scotiabank

Scotiabank upgraded shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating in a research report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Scotiabank currently has $450.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock, up from their prior target price of $430.00.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WAT. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Cfra set a $389.00 target price on Waters in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $390.40.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $369.71 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $21.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.28, a PEG ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $279.24 and a fifty-two week high of $423.56. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $389.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $364.55.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waters will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waters

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Waters during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in Waters by 235.7% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.