Kensington Investment Counsel LLC Trims Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Kensington Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 32.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,687 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,221 shares during the quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 235.7% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 129.3% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 54.3% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE WAT opened at $378.65 on Tuesday. Waters Co. has a 1-year low of $279.24 and a 1-year high of $423.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $391.26 and a 200-day moving average of $370.72. The firm has a market cap of $22.50 billion, a PE ratio of 35.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on WAT. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.07.

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.