Raymond James Trust N.A. Purchases 92 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,308 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 92 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in Waters were worth $379,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Waters by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $446,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.9% during 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 period. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management increased its holdings in Waters by 5.9% in the first quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in Waters by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. now owns 10,819 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,724,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $336.77 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $19.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.05, a PEG ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $313.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $323.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $367.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $709.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $700.09 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 56.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WAT. Leerink Partners upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Waters to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Waters in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $310.58.

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.