MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,381 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Man Group plc raised its position in Waters by 45.6% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 52,363 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $19,426,000 after purchasing an additional 16,391 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at about $726,000. NorthRock Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter valued at about $404,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 211,747 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $78,554,000 after buying an additional 46,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its stake in shares of Waters by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 2,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $916,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Down 2.0%

NYSE WAT opened at $359.22 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $423.56. The business’s 50-day moving average is $348.78 and its 200 day moving average is $370.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.38 billion, a PE ratio of 33.54, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. The business had revenue of $661.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.50 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.21 earnings per share. Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. KeyCorp raised Waters from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Waters from $355.00 to $374.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $390.19.

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.