Waters Corporation $WAT Position Boosted by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 2.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,552,399 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,202 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $539,606,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 22,150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,731,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Waters by 23.3% in the second quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 12,783 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,462,000 after buying an additional 2,417 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 307.6% in the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 287,316 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $100,285,000 after buying an additional 216,825 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 51.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 55,647 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $19,423,000 after acquiring an additional 18,829 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 30.1% during the 2nd quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 185,460 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $64,733,000 after acquiring an additional 42,937 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 0.1%

WAT stock opened at $379.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $22.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.11. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $275.05 and a 1-year high of $423.56. The business’s 50 day moving average is $331.86 and its 200-day moving average is $327.68.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 19th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Waters had a return on equity of 38.60% and a net margin of 21.71%.The firm had revenue of $608.55 million during the quarter. Equities analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on WAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Waters from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $315.00 target price on shares of Waters and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $385.00 price target on Waters and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on Waters in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $381.57.

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.