Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Shares Acquired by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 9.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,989 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 2,181 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Waters were worth $9,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WAT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 112.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 8,910 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $3,305,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. raised its position in shares of Waters by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 23,033 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $8,545,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,114,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $557,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of Waters stock traded down $2.63 during trading on Friday, hitting $352.28. The stock had a trading volume of 807,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 473,842. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $20.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.97, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day moving average of $347.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $365.16. Waters Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $279.24 and a fifty-two week high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $661.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.50 million. Waters had a return on equity of 41.70% and a net margin of 22.02%. The company's revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WAT shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on Waters from $415.00 to $360.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Baird R W upgraded Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded Waters from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $388.00.

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.