Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Stock Position Reduced by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Motley Fool Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Waters Corporation by 3.2%, selling 1,318 shares and owning a total of 39,632 shares, making it the 26th largest holding in its portfolio.
• Institutional investors now hold 94.01% of Waters Corporation's stock, indicating strong institutional interest in the medical instruments supplier.
• Despite recent downgrades from analysts, Waters Corporation has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $378.73, reflecting varying outlooks among financial analysts.

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 39,632 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,318 shares during the period. Waters comprises approximately 0.8% of Motley Fool Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC owned about 0.07% of Waters worth $14,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Waters by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,272,252 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,680,334,000 after acquiring an additional 173,584 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Waters by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,066,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $761,643,000 after acquiring an additional 123,215 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Waters by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,112,128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $409,897,000 after acquiring an additional 136,396 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 889,306 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $329,911,000 after buying an additional 3,713 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 738,056 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $272,026,000 after buying an additional 9,522 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on WAT. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Waters from $374.00 to $352.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector outperform" rating and issued a $465.00 price target on shares of Waters in a report on Friday, July 11th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $400.00 price target on shares of Waters and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $378.73.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT traded up $11.12 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $296.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 623,109 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,087,783. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $321.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $348.25. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $275.05 and a one year high of $423.56. The company has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.04.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.02. Waters had a net margin of 21.71% and a return on equity of 38.60%. The business had revenue of $771.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.63 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

About Waters

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.