Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC Cuts Stock Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC cut its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 91.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,403 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 46,522 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the first quarter worth $28,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 190.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its position in Waters by 19,900.0% during the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on WAT. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Waters in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen boosted their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Waters to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Leerink Partners upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $322.00.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $357.33 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07, a PEG ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $333.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $324.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.10. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $231.90 and a fifty-two week high of $367.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 56.81% and a net margin of 20.71%. The company had revenue of $709.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $700.09 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.80 earnings per share. Waters’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.6 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.