Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Position Reduced by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. decreased its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,978 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 289 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,218,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,404,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Waters by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,241 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,396,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,114,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Waters by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,270 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,864 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $9,966,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised shares of Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank raised shares of Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.07.

Waters Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $392.34 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.31 billion, a PE ratio of 36.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $423.56. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $390.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $369.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. Analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.