Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Boosts Stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 65.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,711 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,867 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,695,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Waters by 21.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 448,304 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $130,053,000 after purchasing an additional 77,951 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of Waters by 8.6% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 652,892 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $189,417,000 after buying an additional 51,853 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Waters by 0.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,879,316 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,368,067,000 after acquiring an additional 41,654 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Waters during the 2nd quarter valued at $9,295,000. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in Waters during the 1st quarter valued at $10,106,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Leerink Partners upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $325.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $380.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $342.58.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $326.71 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $19.39 billion, a PE ratio of 32.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.38 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $341.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $324.75. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $234.04 and a 1 year high of $367.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $709.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $700.09 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 56.81%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.80 EPS. Equities analysts forecast 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.