Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $388.00.

WAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp raised Waters from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. Baird R W upgraded shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $374.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock traded down $1.70 during trading on Friday, reaching $350.22. The company had a trading volume of 251,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 472,254. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $349.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $364.25. Waters has a one year low of $279.24 and a one year high of $423.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The company has a market capitalization of $20.84 billion, a PE ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.10.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released 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. The company had revenue of $661.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.50 million. Waters had a net margin of 22.02% and a return on equity of 41.70%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waters will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,587 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,331,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 85.7% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,642 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,986 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,101,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,813 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,774,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional bought a new stake in shares of Waters in the 1st quarter worth about $75,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.