Portland Global Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Portland Global Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 657 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 154 shares during the quarter. Portland Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $244,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,349 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,925,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Waters by 1.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 81,653 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $29,386,000 after purchasing an additional 934 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Waters in the third quarter valued at about $229,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Waters by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 477,144 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $171,719,000 after purchasing an additional 17,185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. acquired a new position in Waters during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $267,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $361.61 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $387.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $372.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company has a market cap of $21.48 billion, a PE ratio of 33.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $279.24 and a 12 month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America reduced their price target on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank raised shares of Waters from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $397.40.

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.