Wall Street Zen Downgrades Waters (NYSE:WAT) to Hold

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Friday.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $374.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Scotiabank raised shares of Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $400.00 price target on shares of Waters and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waters has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $390.19.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $6.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $348.65. 869,104 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 478,700. The company has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.55, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.14. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $342.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $369.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94. Waters has a twelve month low of $279.24 and a twelve month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $661.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.50 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. The company's revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.21 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Waters will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in Waters in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Waters by 118.9% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 81 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.