Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Acquires 914 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 914 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 0.14% of Waters worth $31,215,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Waters during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Waters by 235.7% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Waters by 129.3% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Trading Down 3.4 %

NYSE:WAT traded down $11.75 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $336.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 279,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 475,907. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.19, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $351.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $370.19. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $423.56.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on WAT. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $407.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note 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. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $392.13.

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.