Summit Trail Advisors LLC Reduces Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Summit Trail Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 70 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in Waters by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 4,586 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in Waters by 274.3% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 16,275 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,348,000 after purchasing an additional 11,927 shares during the period. Forte Capital LLC ADV increased its stake in Waters by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV now owns 1,381 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 262.0% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 724 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 35,265 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $11,610,000 after buying an additional 2,818 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WAT. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays increased their target price on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $301.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares in the company, valued at $799,965. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Up 1.9 %

NYSE WAT opened at $326.06 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.05, a PEG ratio of 6.39 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $333.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $310.76. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $231.90 and a 12 month high of $363.80.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. Waters had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 81.30%. The company had revenue of $636.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $635.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.49 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.