Two Sigma Investments LP Increases Stock Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 35.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 111,261 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 29,097 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP owned about 0.19% of Waters worth $41,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 159,995 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $57,579,000 after acquiring an additional 41,339 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in Waters by 19.8% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,531 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $939,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 964 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 27.9% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 6,829 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,533,000 after buying an additional 1,489 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 40.6% in the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,330 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $494,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE WAT opened at $362.20 on Wednesday. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $279.24 and a 12 month high of $423.56. The company has a market capitalization of $21.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.82, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.14. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $346.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $371.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. Waters had a return on equity of 46.31% and a net margin of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $661.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $655.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WAT. Barclays cut their price target on Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Waters from $355.00 to $374.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Baird R W raised shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $360.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Waters currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $390.19.

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.

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