Jensen Investment Management Inc. Has $15.34 Million Stock Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Jensen Investment Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,936 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 396 shares during the quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. owned 0.07% of Waters worth $15,335,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Waters by 15.7% during the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,070,671 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,131,757,000 after acquiring an additional 416,669 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Waters by 93.3% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 572,823 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $211,125,000 after purchasing an additional 276,433 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Waters in the first quarter valued at approximately $94,028,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Waters by 307.6% during the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 287,316 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $100,285,000 after buying an additional 216,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Waters by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,272,252 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,680,334,000 after acquiring an additional 173,584 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $379.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50 day moving average is $331.86 and its 200-day moving average is $327.59. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 19th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter. Waters had a return on equity of 38.60% and a net margin of 21.71%.The business had revenue of $608.55 million during the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Waters from $315.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waters from $345.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Waters from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $381.57.

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.