Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Shares Sold by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lowered its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 12.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 11,385 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,590 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Waters were worth $3,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Waters in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Barclays dropped their target price on Waters from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $301.20.

Waters Stock Performance

WAT opened at $287.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.21, a P/E/G ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $314.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $323.09. Waters Co. has a 1-year low of $231.90 and a 1-year high of $367.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $636.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $635.57 million. Waters had a return on equity of 66.59% and a net margin of 20.75%. The company’s revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 11.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.