Semanteon Capital Management LP Takes $832,000 Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Semanteon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,527 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $832,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WAT. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at about $158,723,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 129.9% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at about $78,017,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 34.3% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 832,895 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $228,388,000 after purchasing an additional 212,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fenimore Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at about $50,897,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Waters

In other Waters news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total transaction of $177,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,965. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Waters Stock Up 1.0 %

WAT traded up $2.95 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $311.30. 270,280 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 409,031. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $334.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $307.01. The company has a market cap of $18.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69, a PEG ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.92. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $231.90 and a fifty-two week high of $363.80. 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 (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $819.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $815.50 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 81.30%. The business's revenue was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.84 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $298.67.

Waters Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WAT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.