Waters (NYSE:WAT) Rating Increased to Outperform at SVB Leerink

Waters (NYSE:WAT) was upgraded by SVB Leerink from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $375.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock, up from their previous target price of $325.00. SVB Leerink’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.51% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays dropped their target price on Waters from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.91.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $336.28 on Thursday. Waters has a 52-week low of $231.90 and a 52-week high of $367.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The stock has a market cap of $19.95 billion, a PE ratio of 33.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $303.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $321.18.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. Waters had a net margin of 20.75% and a return on equity of 66.59%. The business had revenue of $636.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $635.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.49 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Waters will post 11.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other news, Director Richard H. Fearon bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares in the company, valued at $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Richard H. Fearon bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $332.90 per share, for a total transaction of $332,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total transaction of $1,446,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,321,894.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID lifted its stake in Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID now owns 11,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,776,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 2.9% during the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 1,250 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Waters by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in Waters by 0.3% in the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 13,087 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,797,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eads & Heald Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Waters by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.