Swedbank AB Increases Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Swedbank AB boosted its stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 6.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,288 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,929 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned about 0.05% of Waters worth $11,260,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter worth approximately $392,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 995 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $343,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Waters by 15.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 651 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. increased its position in Waters by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,404 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,172,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its stake in Waters by 0.5% in the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 10,403 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,581,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $347.31 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $367.21. The business has a 50 day moving average of $342.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $325.14. The company has a market capitalization of $20.62 billion, a PE ratio of 34.59, a PEG ratio of 7.02 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Waters to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $338.36.

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.