Waters (NYSE:WAT) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Monday morning.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on WAT. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $390.40.

Waters Trading Down 2.5 %

NYSE WAT opened at $369.71 on Monday. Waters has a twelve month low of $279.24 and a twelve month high of $423.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.02. The stock has a market cap of $21.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.28, a PEG ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $389.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $364.87.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. Equities analysts anticipate that Waters will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Waters by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 502,679 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $186,484,000 after acquiring an additional 25,535 shares during the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 2,356 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $874,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter valued at about $227,000. WBI Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 327.9% during the fourth quarter. WBI Investments LLC now owns 4,129 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,532,000 after buying an additional 3,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in shares of Waters by 35.4% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 111,261 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $41,276,000 after buying an additional 29,097 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

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.