Waters (NYSE:WAT) Price Target Lowered to $295.00 at Barclays

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by analysts at Barclays from $300.00 to $295.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "underweight" rating on the medical instruments supplier's stock. Barclays's target price suggests a potential downside of 8.89% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WAT. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen upped their price target on Waters from $350.00 to $358.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $306.70.

Waters Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE:WAT traded down $2.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $323.80. The company had a trading volume of 398,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 420,346. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.57. Waters has a 52 week low of $231.90 and a 52 week high of $363.80. The company has a market capitalization of $19.20 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.39 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $332.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $310.85.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $636.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $635.57 million. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Waters will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waters news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,837,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,251,163,000 after buying an additional 64,525 shares during the last quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd purchased a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter worth about $361,839,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Waters by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,092,459 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $299,563,000 after purchasing an additional 32,059 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Waters by 129.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 973,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $322,017,000 after purchasing an additional 550,112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 832,895 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $228,388,000 after purchasing an additional 212,754 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

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.