Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Buys New Stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,300 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $853,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Waters by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,098,668 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,633,464,000 after purchasing an additional 19,456 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Waters by 106,144.4% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 3,087,461 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,145,386,000 after buying an additional 3,084,555 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,654,002 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $984,582,000 after buying an additional 212,364 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,451,445 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $537,053,000 after buying an additional 34,762 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AKO Capital LLP raised its stake in Waters by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. AKO Capital LLP now owns 815,379 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $302,489,000 after acquiring an additional 25,172 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on WAT. UBS Group raised their price objective on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $400.00 price target on Waters and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $392.13.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $351.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $279.24 and a fifty-two week high of $423.56. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $352.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $369.92. The stock has a market cap of $20.89 billion, a PE ratio of 32.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.04.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. Analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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