999 Shares in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Acquired by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 999 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $371,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WAT. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its position in Waters by 15.5% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,587 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,331,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 34.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 159,995 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $57,579,000 after purchasing an additional 41,339 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC grew its stake in Waters by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,704 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $632,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in Waters by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,578 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in Waters by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 421,691 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $156,439,000 after purchasing an additional 27,801 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Waters Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of WAT stock traded down $3.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $370.13. 210,896 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 440,020. The stock has a market cap of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 34.58, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. 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's fifty day moving average price is $390.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $371.85. Waters Co. has a 1 year low of $279.24 and a 1 year high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. Research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on WAT. UBS Group raised their price target on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Scotiabank raised shares of Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays upgraded shares of Waters from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Waters from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $391.07.

Waters 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.