Tredje AP fonden Sells 145 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Tredje AP fonden reduced its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,213 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 145 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the first quarter worth $2,773,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter worth about $962,000. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH increased its position in Waters by 2,134.3% in the 1st quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 5,921 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,038,000 after acquiring an additional 5,656 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waters by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,837,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,251,163,000 after acquiring an additional 64,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Waters by 27.1% during the fourth quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 187,483 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $61,725,000 after purchasing an additional 39,954 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Waters in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Waters to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $318.50.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of WAT opened at $338.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.23, a P/E/G ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $328.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $324.50. Waters Co. has a 52-week low of $231.90 and a 52-week high of $367.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $709.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $700.09 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 56.81%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.6 EPS for the current fiscal 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.