Analysts Set Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Price Target at $301.20

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) has received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $301.20.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Waters from $350.00 to $358.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In other Waters news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total transaction of $1,446,560.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,716 shares in the company, valued at $5,321,894.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total value of $1,446,560.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,716 shares in the company, valued at $5,321,894.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Fearon bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $332.90 per share, for a total transaction of $332,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID now owns 11,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,776,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 1,250 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in Waters by 0.3% in the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 13,087 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,797,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Eads & Heald Wealth Management lifted its stake in Waters by 5.9% in the first quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of Waters stock opened at $317.96 on Friday. Waters has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $367.21. The company has a market cap of $18.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.20, a PEG ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $304.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $320.83.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly 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 20.75% and a return on equity of 66.59%. The firm had revenue of $636.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $635.57 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Waters will post 11.83 earnings per share 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.