Waters (NYSE:WAT) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Waters (NYSE:WAT) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

WAT has been the topic of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Scotiabank upgraded Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $390.40.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $379.29 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $388.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $366.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.52 billion, a PE ratio of 35.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.01. Waters has a 52-week low of $279.24 and a 52-week high of $423.56.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 46.31% and a net margin of 21.56%. Analysts forecast that Waters will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waters

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WAT. United Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter worth about $328,000. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in Waters by 48.0% during the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 38,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $14,443,000 after acquiring an additional 12,634 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $544,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 3,081.8% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GTS Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 1,040 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.