Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Receives $397.40 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $401.31.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. StockNews.com cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank raised Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th.

Waters Price Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $355.43 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $385.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $373.45. Waters has a twelve month low of $279.24 and a twelve month high of $423.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.12 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Waters by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,318 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,602,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 8,167.6% in the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 51,590 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $19,139,000 after purchasing an additional 50,966 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Waters in the 4th quarter worth approximately $128,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $22,948,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $223,000. 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.