Hsbc Holdings PLC Boosts Stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 195,481 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,451 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned approximately 0.33% of Waters worth $56,692,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WAT. Linscomb Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.4% during the second quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 7,841 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,275,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Waters by 3.2% during the second quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,084 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Waters by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in Waters by 0.3% during the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 13,087 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,797,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.4% during the first quarter. Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. now owns 10,819 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,724,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of WAT opened at $336.69 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.97 billion, a PE ratio of 33.04, a PEG ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $329.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $324.60. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $231.90 and a 12 month high of $367.21.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Waters in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Leerink Partnrs raised Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Leerink Partners raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $318.50.

Waters Company 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.