Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Stock Holdings Lifted by Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 546 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Waters were worth $203,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Waters by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 966 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $358,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,610 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,565,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 353 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Waters by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $199,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Baird R W upgraded Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays raised Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $401.31.

Waters Stock Performance

WAT opened at $368.53 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $386.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $373.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.86 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.