Victory Capital Management Inc. Trims Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,122 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,329 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $7,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Waters by 22.0% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 16,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,742,000 after purchasing an additional 3,024 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 452.6% during the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 315 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 28.8% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 82,009 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $23,792,000 after buying an additional 18,328 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 7.6% in the second quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,149 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,494,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Investment Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Waters during the 2nd quarter worth about $598,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Leerink Partners upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $325.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waters to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $318.50.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $325.86 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The business has a fifty day moving average of $325.58 and a 200 day moving average of $324.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 0.95. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $231.90 and a 1 year high of $367.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 56.81% and a net margin of 20.71%. The firm had revenue of $709.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $700.09 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.6 earnings per share for the current 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.