Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Holdings Raised by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 25.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,433 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $908,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 452.6% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 315 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Price Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $368.16 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $367.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $338.04. Waters Co. has a 52-week low of $279.24 and a 52-week high of $397.02.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The company had revenue of $740.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $712.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.84 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WAT. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Waters currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $375.85.

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.