Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 39.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,657 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 11,823 shares during the period. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Waters worth $13,728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Waters by 35.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 173 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Waters by 55.3% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 118 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Waters in the 3rd quarter worth $586,000. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Waters by 48.0% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 10,344 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,836,000 after purchasing an additional 3,355 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.82% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WAT shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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, Barclays boosted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $298.67.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock traded up $2.95 on Friday, reaching $311.30. The stock had a trading volume of 270,575 shares, compared to its average volume of 367,375. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The firm's 50-day moving average is $334.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $307.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69, a P/E/G ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.92. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $231.90 and a 12 month high of $363.80.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.06. Waters had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 81.30%. The company had revenue of $819.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $815.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.84 EPS. Waters's quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.