Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Short Interest Up 146.0% in July

Key Points

• Waters Corporation experienced a significant increase in short interest of 146.0% in July, with total short interest rising to 2,020,000 shares.
• Approximately 94.01% of Waters' stock is currently owned by institutional investors, demonstrating strong confidence from the investment community.
• Analysts have varied target price adjustments for Waters, with the current average target price set at $382.40 and a consensus average rating of "Hold".

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,020,000 shares, anincreaseof146.0% from the June 30th total of 821,200 shares. Approximately3.4% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 657,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Based on an average daily volume of 657,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Approximately3.4% of the company's stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 112.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $471,000 after buying an additional 673 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 20,364 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $7,555,000 after buying an additional 5,078 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 98,698 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $36,615,000 after buying an additional 28,191 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of Waters by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,234 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $10,474,000 after buying an additional 3,987 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of Waters by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 72,502 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $26,897,000 after buying an additional 4,700 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waters Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of WAT opened at $290.77 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $17.30 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $332.57 and a 200 day moving average of $354.43. Waters has a 52-week low of $279.61 and a 52-week high of $423.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $661.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $655.50 million. Waters had a return on equity of 41.70% and a net margin of 22.02%. Waters's revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Waters will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $374.00 to $352.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $400.00 target price on shares of Waters and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $382.40.

About Waters

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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