PFG Investments LLC Acquires 35 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

PFG Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,250 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $430,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in Waters by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 3,685 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in Waters by 2,134.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 5,656 shares during the period. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. bought a new stake in Waters during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,773,000. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new stake in Waters in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Waters by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,621 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,246,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on WAT. Barclays lifted their price objective on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $298.67.

Waters Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $6.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $308.92. 370,283 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 407,417. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $334.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $308.02. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $231.90 and a 12 month high of $363.80.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.56 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $819.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $815.50 million. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Waters news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

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.