TD Asset Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

TD Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 235,919 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 15,221 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $87,521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 235.7% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 129.3% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters by 54.3% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank upgraded Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America cut their target price on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Waters from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $396.00 to $407.00 in a report on Wednesday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $397.40.

Waters Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $367.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.83 billion, a PE ratio of 34.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $423.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $388.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $372.10.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. Analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current 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.