Waters (NYSE:WAT) Upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein to Outperform Rating

Waters (NYSE:WAT) was upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Friday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage presently has a $430.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 15.06% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Cfra set a $389.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $430.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $384.71.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $373.72 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $376.97 and its 200-day moving average is $345.11. The company has a market cap of $22.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a PEG ratio of 6.92 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 52-week low of $279.24 and a 52-week high of $397.02.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $712.99 million. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. Waters’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.84 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waters will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waters

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in Waters by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,577,733 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $927,700,000 after buying an additional 49,194 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 1.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,416,683 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $508,123,000 after acquiring an additional 16,703 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Waters by 0.7% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 885,593 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $318,717,000 after acquiring an additional 6,256 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Waters by 1.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 659,539 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $219,811,000 after purchasing an additional 6,647 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 70.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 656,019 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $236,095,000 after purchasing an additional 271,804 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

About Waters

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.