QRG Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 577 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $208,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waters by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,879,316 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,368,067,000 after buying an additional 41,654 shares during the last quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd raised its position in Waters by 1.1% during the first quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 1,110,898 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $382,404,000 after acquiring an additional 11,851 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Waters by 1.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 659,539 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $219,811,000 after acquiring an additional 6,647 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Waters by 21.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 448,304 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $130,053,000 after purchasing an additional 77,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Waters by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 443,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $152,664,000 after purchasing an additional 18,274 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $385.64 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.03 and a beta of 0.97. Waters Co. has a 52 week low of $249.34 and a 52 week high of $393.38. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $348.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $329.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $712.99 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The business’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.84 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of Waters from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waters to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $365.85.

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.