Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Sells 76,044 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 36.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 130,703 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 76,044 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $43,031,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. IMPACTfolio LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. IMPACTfolio LLC now owns 803 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID now owns 11,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,776,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,413 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $465,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 3.1% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,655 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WAT shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays dropped their target price on Waters from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Waters in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on Waters from $350.00 to $358.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In related news, Director Richard H. Fearon purchased 1,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Richard H. Fearon purchased 1,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total value of $1,446,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,321,894.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of Waters stock opened at $289.65 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $318.93 and a 200 day moving average of $323.94. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $231.90 and a 12 month high of $367.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. Waters had a return on equity of 66.59% and a net margin of 20.75%. The company had revenue of $636.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $635.57 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.49 EPS. Waters’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Waters 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.